Tape cassette

ABSTRACT

A tape cassette that includes a housing, at least one tape, and a color indicator portion disposed between the tape housing area and the periphery, and in a specified area adjacent to the tape housing area on a rear edge side of the bottom wall, the color indicator portion indicating color information relating to the at least one tape and including a plurality of lateral information sections that are a plurality of strip-shaped sections extending along the left-and-right direction of the housing and aligned in a front-rear direction of the housing, wherein, of the plurality of lateral information sections, whether an aperture is formed in a first lateral information section indicates a base material color of the at least one tape, and whether an aperture is formed in a second lateral information section indicates a print color of the at least one tape.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application Nos.2009-088440, 2009-088441, 2009-088456, 2009-088460, and 2009-088468,respectively filed on Mar. 31, 2009, and Japanese Patent ApplicationNos. 2009-0156355, 2009-156357, 2009-156369, and 2009-156371,respectively filed on Jun. 30, 2009. The disclosure of the foregoingapplications is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to a tape cassette that is detachablyinstalled in a tape printer.

A tape cassette has been known that, when installed in a housing portionof a tape printer, selectively presses a plurality of detecting switchesprovided on the cassette housing portion to cause the tape printer todetect color information of the tape cassette (a tape color, a charactercolor, etc.). More specifically, a cassette detection portion isprovided on a section of the bottom surface of the tape cassette, wherethrough-holes are formed in a pattern corresponding to the colorinformation. When the tape cassette is installed in the cassette housingportion, the plurality of detecting switches, which are constantly urgedin an upward direction, are selectively pressed in accordance with thepattern of the through-holes formed in the cassette detection portion.The tape printer detects the color information of the tape cassetteinstalled in the cassette housing portion based on a combination of thepressed and non-pressed switches among the plurality of detectingswitches.

SUMMARY

The pattern of through-holes formed in the cassette detection portion isbasically only designed to allow the tape printer to detect the colorinformation. Accordingly, different patterns are allocated randomly inaccordance with the color information. In other words, the patterns ofthrough-holes are not formed in a pattern in accordance with rules toallow them to be identified from the outward appearance. Therefore, itis difficult for a person to visually identify the color information.For that reason, for example, in a tape cassette manufacturing process,it may be difficult for a worker to visually identify a tape and an inkribbon etc. that should be mounted inside the cassette case from theexternal appearance of the tape cassette.

An object of the present invention is to provide a tape cassette thatallows color information to be recognized by visually checking anexternal appearance of the tape cassette.

A tape cassette according to the present invention includes a housing,at least one tape, and a color indicator portion. The housing includes atop wall having a top surface, a bottom wall having a bottom surface,and a side wall. The top wall and the bottom wall each have a generallyrectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is a left-and-rightdirection of the housing. The top wall, the bottom wall, and the sidewall define a periphery of the housing. The at least one tape is mountedin a tape housing area defined within the periphery. The color indicatorportion is disposed between the tape housing area and the periphery, andin a specified area adjacent to the tape housing area on a rear edgeside of the bottom wall. The color indicator portion indicates colorinformation relating to the at least one tape, and includes a pluralityof lateral information sections that are a plurality of strip-shapedsections extending along the left-and-right direction of the housing andaligned in a front-rear direction of the housing. A presence or anabsence of a first aperture formed in a first lateral informationsection indicates, as the color information, a base material color ofthe at least one tape. The first lateral information section is one ofthe plurality of lateral information sections and adjoining the rearedge of the bottom wall.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described belowin detail with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a tape printer 1 when a cassette cover 6is closed;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a tape cassette 30 and acassette housing portion 8;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cassette housing portion 8 with a laminatedtype tape cassette 30 installed, when a platen holder 12 is at a standbyposition;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the cassette housing portion 8 with thelaminated type tape cassette 30 installed, when the platen holder 12 isat a print position;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the cassette housing portion 8 with a receptortype tape cassette 30 installed, when the platen holder 12 is at theprint position;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the cassette housing portion 8 with a thermaltype tape cassette 30 installed, when the platen holder 12 is at theprint position;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line I-I in FIG. 2 asseen in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 8 is a partial enlarged view of a cassette-facing surface 12B onwhich is provided an arm detection portion 200;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of thetape printer 1;

FIG. 10 is an external perspective view of the tape cassette 30 as seenfrom a top surface side;

FIG. 11 is an external perspective view of the tape cassette 30 as seenfrom a bottom surface side;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged and exploded perspective view of an arm portion34 of the tape cassette 30;

FIG. 13 is a bottom view of the tape cassette 30, in which a rearindentation 68C is enlarged;

FIG. 14 is a plan view of the tape cassette 30, in which the rearindentation 68C is enlarged with a top case 31A removed;

FIG. 15 is a plan view of the tape cassette 30 according to a firstcomparison example, in which the rear indentation 68C is enlarged withthe top case 31A removed;

FIG. 16 is a plan view of the tape cassette 30 according to a secondcomparison example, in which the rear indentation 68C is enlarged withthe top case 31A removed;

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line III-III in FIG. 8as seen in the direction of the arrows, and illustrates a state wherethe arm detection portion 200 shown in FIG. 8 opposes an arm indicatorportion 800 shown in FIG. 12;

FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line II-II in FIG. 4 asseen in the direction of the arrows, and illustrates a state where arear detection portion 300 shown in FIG. 7 opposes a rear indicatorportion 900 shown in FIG. 13;

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing processing relating to printing of thetape printer 1;

FIG. 20 is a diagram showing a data structure of a color informationtable 520;

FIG. 21 is an external perspective view of a tape cassette 30 accordingto a modified example, as seen from the bottom surface side;

FIG. 22 is a bottom view of the tape cassette 30 according to themodified example, in which the rear indentation 68C is enlarged;

FIG. 23 is a plan view of the tape cassette 30 according to the modifiedexample, in which the rear indentation 68C is enlarged with the top case31A removed; and

FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II in FIG. 4as seen in the direction of the arrows, and shows the tape cassette 30according to the modified example.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be explained belowwith reference to the figures. The configurations of the apparatuses,the flowcharts of various processing and the like shown in the drawingsare merely exemplary and do not intend to limit the present invention.

A tape printer 1 and a tape cassette 30 according to the presentembodiment will be explained hereinafter with reference to FIG. 1 toFIG. 23. In the explanation of the present embodiment, the lower leftside, the upper right side, the lower right side, and the upper leftside in FIG. 1 are respectively defined as the front side, the rearside, the right side, and the left side of the tape printer 1. Inaddition, the lower right side, the upper left side, the upper rightside, and the lower left side in FIG. 2 are respectively defined as thefront side, the rear side, the right side, and the left side of the tapecassette 30.

Note that, in actuality, a group of gears, including gears 91, 93, 94,97, 98 and 101 shown in FIG. 2, is covered and hidden by the bottomsurface of a cavity 8A. However, for explanation purposes, the bottomsurface of the cavity 8A is not shown in FIG. 2. Furthermore, in FIG. 2to FIG. 6, side walls that form a periphery around a cassette housingportion 8 are shown schematically, but this is simply a schematicdiagram, and the side walls shown in FIG. 2, for example, are depictedas thicker than they are in actuality. Moreover, in FIG. 3 to FIG. 6,for ease of understanding, the states in which various types of the tapecassette 30 are installed in the cassette housing portion 8 are shownwith a top case 31A removed.

First, an outline configuration of the tape printer 1 according to thepresent embodiment will be explained. Hereinafter, the tape printer 1configured as a general purpose device will be explained as an example.As the general purpose device, the tape printer 1 may commonly use aplurality of types of tape cassettes 30 with various types of tapes. Thetypes of the tape cassettes 30 may include a thermal type tape cassette30 that houses only a heat-sensitive paper tape, a receptor type tapecassette 30 that houses a print tape and an ink ribbon, and a laminatedtype tape cassette 30 that houses a double-sided adhesive tape, a filmtape and an ink ribbon.

As shown in FIG. 1, the tape printer 1 is provided with a main unitcover 2 that has a rectangular shape in a plan view. A keyboard 3 isprovided on the front side of the main unit cover 2. The keyboard 3includes character keys for characters (letters, symbols, numerals, andso on), a variety of function keys, and so on. A display 5 is providedon the rear side of the keyboard 3. The display 5 displays inputcharacters. A cassette cover 6 is provided on the rear side of thedisplay 5. The cassette cover 6 may be opened and closed when the tapecassette 30 is replaced. Further, although not shown in the figures, adischarge slit is provided to the rear of the left side of the main unitcover 2, from which the printed tape is discharged to the outside. Also,a discharge window is formed on the left side of the cassette cover 6,such that, when the cassette cover 6 is in a closed state, the dischargeslit is exposed to the outside.

Next, an internal configuration within the main unit cover 2 below thecassette cover 6 will be explained with reference to FIG. 2 to FIG. 8.As shown in FIG. 2, the cassette housing portion 8 is provided in theinterior of the main unit cover 2 below the cassette cover 6. Thecassette housing portion 8 is an area in which the tape cassette 30 canbe installed or removed. The cassette housing portion 8 includes acavity 8A and a cassette support portion 8B. The cavity 8A is formed asa depression that has a flat bottom surface, and the shape of the cavity8A generally corresponds to the shape of a bottom surface of a cassettecase 31 (to be described later) when the tape cassette 30 is installed.The cassette support portion 8B is a flat portion extending horizontallyfrom the outer edge of the cavity 8A.

The plan view shape of the cassette support portion 8B generallycorresponds to the plan view shape of the tape cassette 30, and is arectangular shape that is longer in the left-and-right direction. Therear edge of the cavity 8A has a shape in which two arcs are lined upwith each other in the left-and-right direction when seen in a planview. A section of the cassette support portion 8B that is locatedbetween the two arcs is referred to as a rear support portion 8C. Therear support portion 8C is a portion that opposes a rear indentation 68C(refer to FIG. 11) of the tape cassette 30 installed in the cassettehousing portion 8. The remaining part of the cassette support portion 8Bexcept the rear support portion 8C is a portion that opposes a lowersurface of a common portion 32 (more specifically, corner portions 32Ato be described later) of the tape cassette 30 when the tape cassette 30is installed in the cassette housing portion 8.

A rear support pin 301 and a rear detection portion 300 are provided onthe rear support portion 8C. The rear support pin 301 is a column-shapedmember that protrudes upward from the rear support portion 8C, in thevicinity of a position where the two arcs are joined at the rear edge ofthe cavity 8A. The rear support pin 301 supports the rear indentation68C of the tape cassette 30 (to be described later) from underneath whenthe tape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housing portion 8.

The rear detection portion 300 includes a plurality of detectingswitches 310. Switch terminals 322 of the detecting switches 310respectively protrude upward from through-holes 8D provided in the rearsupport portion 8C. In the present embodiment, the rear detectionportion 300 includes five detecting switches 310A to 310E. Four of thedetecting switches (the detecting switches 310A to 310D) are aligned ina single line along the rear end of the rear support portion 8C, in thatorder from the left side (the right side in FIG. 7). The remaining onedetecting switch 310E is arranged to the front of the second detectingswitch 310C from the right. Hereinafter, the detecting switches 310provided in the rear detection portion 300 are referred to as the reardetecting switches 310.

Here, the structure of the rear detecting switches 310 will be explainedin detail with reference to FIG. 7. As shown in FIG. 7, each of the reardetecting switches 310 (the rear detecting switches 310A to 310E)includes a generally cylindrically shaped main unit 321 and a bar-shapedswitch terminal 322. The main unit 321 is positioned below the rearsupport portion 8C, namely, inside the main unit cover 2. The switchterminal 322 can extend and retract in the direction of an axis linefrom one end of the main unit 321. The other end of the main unit 321 ofeach of the rear detecting switches 310 is attached to a switch supportplate 320 and positioned inside the main unit cover 2.

In addition, on the one end of the main units 321, the switch terminals322 can extend and retract through the through-holes 8D formed in therear support portion 8C. Each of the switch terminals 322 is constantlymaintained in a state in which the switch terminal 322 extends from themain unit 321 due to a spring member (not shown in the figures) providedinside the main unit 321. When the switch terminal 322 is not pressed,the switch terminal 322 remains extended from the main unit 321 to be inan off state. On the other hand, when the switch terminal 322 ispressed, the switch terminal 322 is pushed back into the main unit 321to be in an on state.

As shown in FIG. 2, when the tape cassette 30 is not installed in thecassette housing portion 8, the rear detecting switches 310 areseparated from the tape cassette 30. Consequently, all the reardetecting switches 310 are in the off state. On the other hand, when thetape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housing portion 8, therear detecting switches 310 oppose a rear indicator portion 900 (to bedescribed later) of the tape cassette 30, and the rear detectingswitches 310 are selectively pressed by the rear indicator portion 900.The type of the tape (hereinafter referred to as the tape type) mountedin the tape cassette 30 is detected based on a combination of the on andoff states of the rear detecting switches 310. The detection of the tapetype by the rear detection portion 300 will be described in more detaillater.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, two positioning pins 102 and 103 areprovided at two positions on the cassette support portion 8B. Morespecifically, the positioning pin 102 is provided on the left side ofthe cavity 8A and the positioning pin 103 is provided on the right sideof the cavity 8A. The positioning pins 102 and 103 are provided at thepositions that respectively oppose pin holes 62 and 63 (refer to FIG.11), when the tape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housingportion 8. The pin holes 62 and 63 are two indentations formed in thelower surface of the common portion 32 of the tape cassette 30. When thetape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housing portion 8, thepositioning pins 102 and 103 are respectively inserted into the pinholes 62 and 63 to support the tape cassette 30 from underneath at theleft and right positions of the peripheral portion of the tape cassette30.

The cassette housing portion 8 is equipped with a feed mechanism, aprint mechanism, and the like. The feed mechanism pulls out the tapefrom the tape cassette 30 and feeds the tape. The print mechanism printscharacters on a surface of the tape. As shown in FIG. 2, a head holder74 is fixed in the front part of the cassette housing portion 8, and athermal head 10 that includes a heating element (not shown in thefigures) is mounted on the head holder 74.

A tape feed motor 23 that is a stepping motor is provided outside of thecassette housing portion 8 (the upper right side in FIG. 2). A drivegear 91 is anchored to the lower end of a drive shaft of the tape feedmotor 23. The drive gear 91 is meshed with a gear 93 through an opening,and the gear 93 is meshed with a gear 94. A ribbon take-up shaft 95 isstanding upward on the upper surface of the gear 94. The ribbon take-upshaft 95 drives the rotation of a ribbon take-up spool 44, which will bedescribed later. In addition, the gear 94 is meshed with a gear 97, thegear 97 is meshed with a gear 98, and the gear 98 is meshed with a gear101. A tape drive shaft 100 is standing upward on the upper surface ofthe gear 101. The tape drive shaft 100 drives the rotation of a tapedrive roller 46, which will be described later.

If the tape feed motor 23 is driven to rotate in the counterclockwisedirection in a state where the tape cassette 30 is installed in thecassette housing portion 8, the ribbon take-up shaft 95 is driven torotate in the counterclockwise direction via the drive gear 91, the gear93 and the gear 94. The ribbon take-up shaft 95 causes the ribbontake-up spool 44, which is fitted with the ribbon take-up shaft 95 byinsertion, to rotate. Furthermore, the rotation of the gear 94 istransmitted to the tape drive shaft 100 via the gear 97, the gear 98 andthe gear 101, to thereby drive the tape drive shaft 100 to rotate in theclockwise direction. The tape drive shaft 100 causes the tape driveroller 46, which is fitted with the tape drive shaft 100 by insertion,to rotate.

As shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 6, on the front side of the head holder 74,an arm shaped platen holder 12 is pivotably supported around a supportshaft 12A. A platen roller 15 and a movable feed roller 14 are bothrotatably supported on the leading end of the platen holder 12. Theplaten roller 15 faces the thermal head 10, and may be moved close toand apart from the thermal head 10. The movable feed roller 14 faces thetape drive roller 46 that is fitted with the tape drive shaft 100 byinsertion, and may be moved close to and apart from the tape driveroller 46.

A release lever (not shown in the figures), which moves in theleft-and-right direction in response to the opening and closing of thecassette cover 6, is coupled to the platen holder 12. When the cassettecover 6 is opened, the release lever moves in the right direction, andthe platen holder 12 moves toward the stand-by position shown in FIG. 3.At the stand-by position shown in FIG. 3, the platen holder 12 has movedaway from the cassette housing portion 8. Therefore, the tape cassette30 can be installed into or detached from the cassette housing portion 8when the platen holder 12 is at the stand-by position. The platen holder12 is constantly elastically urged to remain in the stand-by position bya spiral spring that is not shown in the figures.

On the other hand, when the cassette cover 6 is closed, the releaselever moves in the left direction and the platen holder 12 moves towardthe print position shown in FIG. 4 to FIG. 6. At the print positionshown in FIG. 4 to FIG. 6, the platen holder 12 has moved close to thecassette housing portion 8. As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, when thelaminated type tape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housingportion 8, the platen roller 15 presses the thermal head 10 via a filmtape 59 and an ink ribbon 60. At the same time, the movable feed roller14 presses the tape drive roller 46 via a double-sided adhesive tape 58and the film tape 59.

In a similar way, as shown in FIG. 5, when the receptor type tapecassette 30 is installed in the cassette housing portion 8, the platenroller 15 presses the thermal head 10 via a print tape 57 and the inkribbon 60, while the movable feed roller 14 presses the tape driveroller 46 via the print tape 57. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, when thethermal type tape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housingportion 8, the platen roller 15 presses the thermal head 10 via aheat-sensitive paper tape 55, while the movable feed roller 14 pressesthe tape drive roller 46 via the heat-sensitive paper tape 55.

As described above, at the print position shown in FIG. 4 to FIG. 6,printing can be performed using the tape cassette 30 installed in thecassette housing portion 8. The heat-sensitive paper tape 55, the printtape 57, the double-sided adhesive tape 58, the film tape 59 and the inkribbon 60 will be explained in more detail later.

As shown in FIG. 3, a feed path along which a printed tape 50 is fedextends from a tape discharge portion 49 of the tape cassette 30 to adischarge slit (not shown in the figures) of the tape printer 1. Acutting mechanism 17 that cuts the printed tape 50 at a predeterminedposition is provided on the feed path. The cutting mechanism 17 includesa fixed blade 18 and a movable blade 19 that opposes the fixed blade 18and that is supported such that it can move in the back-and-forthdirection (in the up-and-down direction in FIG. 3 to FIG. 6). Themovable blade 19 is moved in the back-and-forth direction by a cuttermotor 24 (refer to FIG. 9).

As shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 6, an arm detection portion 200 is providedon the rear side surface of the platen holder 12, namely, a surface onthe side that opposes the thermal head 10 (hereinafter referred to as acassette-facing surface 12B). The arm detection portion 200 is providedslightly to the right of a center position in the longitudinal directionof the cassette-facing surface 12B. The arm detection portion 200includes a plurality of detecting switches 210. Switch terminals 222(refer to FIG. 17) of the detecting switches 210 respectively protrudeto the rear such that the detecting switches 210 oppose the front wall(more specifically, an arm front wall 35 which will be described later)of the tape cassette 30 installed in the cassette housing portion 8.

In a similar way to the above-described switch terminal 322, when theswitch terminal 222 of each of the detecting switches 210 is notpressed, it is extended to be in an off state, and when the switchterminal 222 is pressed, it is pushed back to be in an on state. Notethat, hereinafter, the detecting switches 210 provided in the armdetection portion 200 are referred to as the arm detecting switches 210.

As shown in FIG. 8, in the present embodiment, five through-holes 12Care formed in three rows in the vertical direction in thecassette-facing surface 12B of the platen holder 12. More specifically,the through-holes 12C are arranged such that two holes are arranged inan upper row, two holes are arranged in a middle row and one hole isarranged in a lower row. Positions of the through-holes 12C aredifferent from each other in the left-and-right direction. Specifically,the five through-holes 12C are arranged in a zigzag pattern from theleft side of the cassette-facing surface 12B (the right side in FIG. 8),in the following order: the left side of the middle row, the left sideof the upper row, the right side of the middle row, the right side ofthe upper row, and then the lower row. The five arm detecting switches210 are provided from the left side of the cassette-facing surface 12Bin the order 210A, 210B, 210C, 210D, and 210E, at positionscorresponding to the five through-holes 12C. The arm detecting switches210A to 210E are each positioned at a height facing an arm indicatorportion 800 (to be described later), in a state where the tape cassette30 is installed in the cassette housing portion 8 at the properposition.

If the platen holder 12 moves toward the stand-by position (refer toFIG. 3) in a state where the tape cassette 30 is installed in thecassette housing portion 8, the arm detecting switches 210 are separatedfrom the tape cassette 30. Consequently, all the arm detecting switches210 are in the off state. On the other hand, if the platen holder 12moves toward the print position (refer to FIG. 4 to FIG. 6), the armdetecting switches 210 oppose the front wall (more specifically, the armfront wall 35 that will be described later) of the tape cassette 30, andthe arm detecting switches 210 are selectively pressed by the armindicator portion 800, which will be described later. The tape type isdetected based on a combination of the on and off states of the armdetecting switches 210, as will be described in more detail later.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 6, a latching piece 225 is providedon the cassette-facing surface 12B of the platen holder 12. The latchingpiece 225 is a plate-like protrusion that extends in the left-and-rightdirection. In a similar way to the switch terminals 222 of the armdetecting switches 210, the latching piece 225 protrudes from thecassette-facing surface 12B in a generally horizontal manner toward thecassette housing portion 8. In other words, the latching piece 225protrudes such that the latching piece 225 opposes the front wall (morespecifically, the arm front wall 35) of the tape cassette 30 installedin the cassette housing portion 8. When the tape cassette 30 isinstalled in the cassette housing portion 8 at the proper position, thelatching piece 225 is positioned at a height facing a latching hole 820(refer to FIG. 2) formed in the arm front wall 35 of the tape cassette30.

Next, the electrical configuration of the tape printer 1 will beexplained with reference to FIG. 9. As shown in FIG. 9, the tape printer1 includes a control circuit 400 formed on a control board. The controlcircuit 400 includes a CPU 401 that controls each instrument, a ROM 402,a CGROM 403, a RAM 404, and an input/output interface 411, all of whichare connected to the CPU 401 via a data bus 410.

The ROM 402 stores various programs to control the tape printer 1,including a display drive control program, a print drive controlprogram, a pulse number determination program, a cutting drive controlprogram, and so on. The display drive control program controls a liquidcrystal drive circuit (LCDC) 405 in association with code data ofcharacters, such as letters, numerals and so on input from the keyboard3. The print drive control program drives the thermal head 10 and thetape feed motor 23. The pulse number determination program determinesthe number of pulses to be applied corresponding to the amount offormation energy for each print dot. The cutting drive control programdrives the cutting motor 24 to cut the printed tape 50 at apredetermined cutting position. The CPU 401 performs a variety ofcomputations in accordance with each type of program. Note that the ROM402 also stores various tables that are used to identify the tape typeof the tape cassette 30 installed in the tape printer 1. The tables willbe explained in more detail later.

The CGROM 403 stores print dot pattern data to be used to print variouscharacters. The print dot pattern data is associated with correspondingcode data for the characters. The print dot pattern data is categorizedby font (Gothic, Mincho, and so on), and the stored data for each fontincludes six print character sizes (dot sizes of 16, 24, 32, 48, 64 and96, for example).

The RAM 404 includes a plurality of storage areas, including a textmemory, a print buffer and so on. The text memory stores text data inputfrom the keyboard 3. The print buffer stores dot pattern data, includingthe printing dot patterns for characters and the number of pulses to beapplied that is the amount of formation energy for each dot, and so on.The thermal head 10 performs dot printing in accordance with the dotpattern data stored in the print buffer. Other storage areas store dataobtained in various computations and so on.

The input/output interface 411 is connected, respectively, to the armdetecting switches 210A to 210E, the rear detecting switches 310A to310E, the keyboard 3, the liquid crystal drive circuit (LCDC) 405 thathas a video RAM (not shown in the figures) to output display data to thedisplay (LCD) 5, a drive circuit 406 that drives the thermal head 10, adrive circuit 407 that drives the tape feed motor 23, a drive circuit408 that drives the cutter motor 24, and so on.

The configuration of the tape cassette 30 according to the presentembodiment will be explained below with reference to FIG. 2 to FIG. 6and FIG. 10 to FIG. 18. Hereinafter, the tape cassette 30 configured asa general purpose cassette will be explained as an example. As thegeneral purpose cassette, the tape cassette 30 may be assembled as thethermal type, the receptor type and the laminated type that have beenexplained above, by changing, as appropriate, the type of the tape to bemounted in the tape cassette 30 and by changing the presence or absenceof the ink ribbon, and so on.

FIG. 2 to FIG. 4 and FIG. 10 to FIG. 14 are figures relating to the tapecassette 30 in which a width of the tape is 36 mm, which is equal to orgreater than a predetermined width (18 mm, for example). The tapecassette 30 represented in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4 and FIG. 10 to FIG. 14 isassembled as the laminated type cassette in which the double-sidedadhesive tape 58 with a white base material, and the ink ribbon 60 witha black ink color are mounted.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 10, the tape cassette 30 includes a cassettecase 31 that is a housing having a generally rectangular parallelepipedshape (box-like shape), with rounded corner portions in a plan view. Thecassette case 31 includes a bottom case 31B and a top case 31A. Thebottom case 31B includes a bottom wall 30B that forms the bottom surfaceof the cassette case 31. The top case 31A includes a top wall 30A thatforms the top surface of the cassette case 31. The top case 31A is fixedto an upper portion of the bottom case 31B.

When the top case 31A and the bottom case 31B are joined, a side wall30C of a predetermined height is formed. The side wall 30C extendsbetween the top wall 30A and the bottom wall 30B along the peripheriesof the top wall 30A and the bottom wall 30B. In other words, thecassette case 31 is a box-shaped case that has the top wall 30A and thebottom wall 30B, which are a pair of rectangular flat portions opposingeach other in a vertical direction, and the side wall 30C (in thepresent embodiment, including four side walls of a front wall, a rearwall, a left side wall and a right side wall) that has a predeterminedheight and extends along the peripheries of the top wall 30A and thebottom wall 30B.

In the cassette case 31, the peripheries of the top wall 30A and thebottom wall 30B may not be entirely surrounded by the side wall 30C. Apart of the side wall 30C (the rear wall, for example) may have anaperture that exposes the interior of the cassette case 31 to theoutside. Further, a boss that connects the top wall 30A and the bottomwall 30B may be provided in a position facing the aperture. In theexplanation below, the distance from the bottom surface to the topsurface (the length in the vertical direction) is referred to as theheight of the tape cassette 30 or the height of the cassette case 31. Inthe present embodiment, the vertical direction of the cassette case 31(namely, the direction in which the top wall 30A and the bottom wall 30Boppose each other) generally corresponds to the direction ofinstallation and removal of the tape cassette 30.

The cassette case 31 has the corner portions 32A that have the samewidth (the same length in the vertical direction), regardless of thetype of the tape cassette 30. The corner portions 32A each protrude inan outward direction to form a right angle when seen in a plan view.However, the front left corner portion 32A does not form a right anglein the plan view, as the tape discharge portion 49 is provided in thecorner. When the tape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housingportion 8, the lower surface of the corner portions 32A opposes theabove-described cassette support portion 8B inside the cassette housingportion 8.

The cassette case 31 includes a portion that is called the commonportion 32. The common portion 32 includes the corner portions 32A andencircles the cassette case 31 along the side wall 30C at the sameposition as the corner portions 32A in the vertical (height) directionof the cassette case 31 and also has the same width as the cornerportions 32A. More specifically, the common portion 32 is a portion thathas a symmetrical shape in the vertical direction with respect to acenter line in the vertical (height) direction of the cassette case 31.

The height of the tape cassette 30 differs depending on the width of thetape (the heat-sensitive paper tape 55, the print tape 57, thedouble-sided adhesive tape 58, the film tape 59 and so on) mounted inthe cassette case 31. The height of the common portion 32, however, isset to be the same, regardless of the width of the tape of the tapecassette 30. For example, when the width of the common portion 32 is 12mm, as the width of the tape of the tape cassette 30 is larger (18 mm,24 mm, 36 mm, for example), the height of the cassette case 31 becomesaccordingly larger, but the width of the common portion 32 remainsconstant.

As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 10 and FIG. 11, the top case 31A and the bottomcase 31B respectively have support holes 65A, 66A and 67A and supportholes 65B, 66B and 67B that rotatably support a first tape spool 40, asecond tape spool 41 and the ribbon take-up spool 44, respectively,which will be explained later. The support holes 65A and 65B arecommunicated with a first tape housing area 33A (refer to FIG. 3 to FIG.6) at a substantially center position of the first tape housing area 33Awhen seen in a plan view. The first tape housing area 33A is provided ina left side area inside the cassette case 31. The support holes 66A and66B are communicated with a second tape housing area 33B (refer to FIG.3 to FIG. 6) at a substantially center position of the second tapehousing area 33B when seen in a plan view. The second tape housing area33B is provided in a right side area inside the cassette case 31.

The first tape housing area 33A has a generally circular shape in a planview that corresponds to the tape wound on the first tape spool 40 (thedouble-sided adhesive tape 58 in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4). The second tapehousing area 33B has a generally circular shape in a plan view thatcorresponds to the tape wound on the second tape spool 41 (the film tape59 in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4). The first and second tape housing areas 33Aand 33B are provided in the cassette case 31 whose longitudinaldirection is the left-and-right direction, and lined up with each otherin the left-and-right direction such that their outer edges are adjoinedto each other in a plan view. Further, the front right portion in thecassette case 31 is provided with an ink ribbon housing area 33C that ispositioned to the front of the first and second tape housing areas 33Aand 33B.

In the laminated type tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, thedouble-sided adhesive tape 58 wound on the first tape spool 40, the filmtape 59 wound on the second tape spool 41 and the ink ribbon 60 wound ona ribbon spool 42 are mounted in the cassette case 31. The first tapespool 40, on which the double-sided adhesive tape 58 is wound with itsrelease paper facing outward, is rotatably mounted in the first tapehousing area 33A via the support holes 65A and 65B. The second tapespool 41, on which the film tape 59 is wound, is rotatably mounted inthe second tape housing area 33B via the support holes 66A and 66B. Theink ribbon 60 that is wound on the ribbon spool 42 is rotatably arrangedin the ink ribbon housing area 33C.

Between the first tape spool 40 and the ribbon spool 42 in the cassettecase 31, the ribbon take-up spool 44 is rotatably supported by thesupport holes 67A and 67B. The ribbon take-up spool 44 pulls out the inkribbon 60 from the ribbon spool 42 and takes up the ink ribbon 60 thathas been used to print characters. A clutch spring (not shown in thefigures) is attached to a lower portion of the ribbon take-up spool 44to prevent loosening of the taken up ink ribbon 60 due to reverserotation of the ribbon take-up spool 44.

In the receptor type tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 5, the print tape 57wound on the first tape spool 40 and the ink ribbon 60 wound on theribbon spool 42 are mounted in the cassette case 31. The receptor typetape cassette 30 does not include the second tape spool 41.

In the thermal type tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 6, the heat-sensitivepaper tape 55 wound on the first tape spool 40 is mounted in thecassette case 31. The thermal type tape cassette 30 does not include thesecond tape spool 41 and the ribbon spool 42.

As shown in FIG. 2, a semi-circular groove 34K that has a semi-circularshape in a plan view is provided in the front wall of the cassette case31, and extends over the height of the cassette case 31 (in other words,extends from the top surface to the bottom surface). Of the front wallof the cassette case 31, a section that stretches leftwards from thesemi-circular groove 34K is referred to as the arm front wall 35. Aportion that is defined by the arm front wall 35 and an arm rear wall 37and that extends leftwards from the front right portion of the tapecassette 30 is referred to as an arm portion 34. The arm rear wall 37 isa wall separately provided at the rear of the arm front wall 35 andextends over the height of the cassette case 31.

As shown in FIG. 12, a tape feed path, along which the film tape 59 isfed, and a ribbon feed path, along which the ink ribbon 60 is fed, areformed as different feed paths separated by a separating wall 34D insidethe arm portion 34. After the film tape 59 and the ink ribbon 60 arerespectively guided and fed along the feed paths, the film tape 59 andthe ink ribbon 60 are joined together at an exit 34A of the arm portion34, and are discharged from the exit 34A toward a head insertion portion39.

Although FIG. 12 shows an example of the laminated type tape cassette 30(refer to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4), the arm portion 34 of the other types oftape cassettes 30 is similar. In the receptor type tape cassette 30(refer to FIG. 5), the print tape 57 is guided and fed along the tapefeed path, while the ink ribbon 60 is guided and fed along the ribbonfeed path. In the thermal type tape cassette 30 (refer to FIG. 6), theheat-sensitive paper tape 55 is guided and fed along the tape feed path,while the ribbon feed path is not used.

When the platen holder 12 moves to the print position (refer to FIG. 4to FIG. 6) in a state where the tape cassette 30 is installed in thecassette housing portion 8, the arm detection portion 200 and thelatching piece 225 provided on the cassette-facing surface 12B opposethe arm front wall 35. As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 12, the arm frontwall 35 is provided with the arm indicator portion 800 and the latchinghole 820. The arm indicator portion 800 allows the tape printer 1 todetect the tape type, by selectively pressing the arm detecting switches210. The latching hole 820 is a hole into which the latching piece 225is inserted.

The arm indicator portion 800 includes a plurality of indicators. Eachof the indicators is formed as one of the non-pressing portion 801 andthe pressing portion 802 and provided at a position corresponding toeach of the arm detecting switches 210. Specifically, the arm indicatorportion 800 includes a combination of the non-pressing portion(s) 801and the pressing portion(s) 802 arranged in a pattern that correspondsto print information. The print information, among the tape types of thetape cassette 30, is essential to perform correct printing in the tapeprinter 1. In the present embodiment, the arm indicator portion 800includes five indicators 800A to 800E, each of which is formed as eitherthe non-pressing portion 801 or the pressing portion 802, arranged atpositions that respectively oppose the five arm detecting switches 210Ato 210E when the tape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housingportion 8.

The non-pressing portion 801 is a switch hole that has an uprightrectangular shape in a front view. The switch terminal 222 (refer toFIG. 17) of each of the arm detecting switches 210 can be inserted intoand removed from the switch hole. The arm detecting switch 210 thatopposes the non-pressing portion 801 remains in the off state, becausethe switch terminal 222 is inserted into the non-pressing portion 801.The pressing portion 802 is a surface portion that does not allow theinsertion of the switch terminal 222. The arm detecting switch 210 thatopposes the pressing portion 802 is changed to the on state, because theswitch terminal 222 contacts with the pressing portion 802.

The latching hole 820 is a slit-like through-hole that extends in theleft-and-right direction on the upper right side of the arm indicatorportion 800. The latching hole 820 is arranged to oppose the latchingpiece 225 (refer to FIG. 8) such that the latching piece 225 can beinserted into and removed from the latching hole 820 when the tapecassette 30 is installed in the cassette housing portion 8.

As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 6, the head insertion portion 39 is a spacethat has a generally rectangular shape in a plan view and that extendsthrough the tape cassette 30 in the vertical direction. The headinsertion portion 39 is surrounded by the arm rear wall 37 and aperipheral wall that is provided continuously from the arm rear wall 37.The head holder 74 that supports the thermal head 10 of the tape printer1 is inserted into the head insertion portion 39, and the thermal head10 performs printing on the tape (one of the heat-sensitive paper tape55, the print tape 57 and the film tape 59) discharged from the exit 34Aof the arm portion 34.

Further, a support hole 64 (refer to FIG. 11) is provided on thedownstream side of the head insertion portion 39, in the tape feeddirection from the exit 34A of the arm portion 34 to the tape dischargeportion 49. The tape drive roller 46 is rotatably supported inside thesupport hole 64. In a case where the laminated type tape cassette 30shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 is installed in the cassette housing portion8, the tape drive roller 46, by moving in concert with the opposingmovable feed roller 14, pulls out the film tape 59 from the second tapespool 41. At the same time, the tape drive roller 46 pulls out thedouble-sided adhesive tape 58 from the first tape spool 40, then guidesthe double-sided adhesive tape 58 to the print surface of the film tape59 to bond them together.

A pair of regulating members 36 that match in the vertical direction areprovided on the upstream side of the tape drive roller 46. The baseportions of the regulating members 36 regulate the printed film tape 59in the vertical direction (in the tape width direction) on thedownstream side of the thermal head 10, and direct the printed film tape59 toward the tape discharge portion 49. The regulating members 36regulate the film tape 59 such that it can be boned to the double-sidedadhesive tape 58 appropriately without making any positionaldisplacement.

A guide wall 47 is standing in the vicinity of the regulating members36. The guide wall 47 serves to separate the used ink ribbon 60 that hasbeen fed via the head insertion portion 39 from the film tape 59, andguides the used ink ribbon 60 toward the ribbon take-up spool 44. Aseparating wall 48 is standing between the guide wall 47 and the ribbontake-up spool 44. The separating wall 48 prevents mutual contact betweenthe used ink ribbon 60 that is guided along the guide wall 47 and thedouble-sided adhesive tape 58 that is wound on and supported by thefirst tape spool 40.

In a case where the receptor type tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 5 isinstalled in the cassette housing portion 8, the print tape 57 is pulledout from the first tape spool 40 by the tape drive roller 46 moving inconcert with the movable feed roller 14. On the downstream side of thethermal head 10, the printed print tape 57 is regulated in the verticaldirection (in the tape width direction) by the base portions of theregulating members 36, and is guided toward the tape discharge portion49. In addition, the used ink ribbon 60 that has been fed via the headinsertion portion 39 is separated from the print tape 57 by the guidewall 47, and guided toward the ribbon take-up spool 44.

In a case where the thermal type tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 6 isinstalled, the heat-sensitive paper tape 55 is pulled out from the firsttape spool 40 by the tape drive roller 46 moving in concert with themovable feed roller 14. On the downstream side of the thermal head 10,the printed heat-sensitive paper tape 55 is regulated in the verticaldirection (in the tape width direction) by the base portions of theregulating members 36, and guided toward the tape discharge portion 49.

As shown in FIG. 11, the pin holes 62 and 63 are provided at twopositions on the lower surface of the corner portions 32A, correspondingto the above-described positioning pins 102 and 103 of the tape printer1. More specifically, the pin hole 62, into which the positioning pin102 is inserted, is an indentation provided in the lower surface of thecorner portion 32A to the rear (the upper side in FIG. 11) of thesupport hole 64 that is provided in the left front portion of thecassette case 31 (the lower right side in FIG. 11). The pin hole 63,into which the positioning pin 103 is inserted, is an indentationprovided in the lower surface of the corner portion 32A in the vicinityof a central portion of the right end of the cassette case 31 (the leftside in FIG. 11). Note that the tape drive roller 46 and some othercomponents are not shown in FIG. 11.

A distance in the vertical (height) direction of the tape cassette 30between the position of the pin holes 62 and 63 and a center position inthe vertical direction of the film tape 59 that is the print mediumhoused in the cassette case 31 is constant, regardless of the tape type(the tape width, for example) of the tape cassette 30. In other words,the distance remains constant even when the height of the tape cassette30 is different.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 10, a top surface affixing portion 68A, arear surface affixing portion 68B and the rear indentation 68C areprovided on a rear surface 68 of the cassette case 31. The top surfaceaffixing portion 68A is provided in a rear portion of the top wall 30A,and has a rectangular shape in a plan view. The back surface affixingportion 68B is provided along the vertical direction of the side wall30C, and has a rectangular shape in a rear view. The rear indentation68C is provided in a rear portion of the bottom wall 30B, and has agenerally triangular shape in a bottom view. The top surface affixingportion 68A, the back surface affixing portion 68B and the rearindentation 68C have the same width, and are provided at a substantiallycenter position in the left-and-right direction in a rear portion of thecassette case 31. The top surface affixing portion 68A, the back surfaceaffixing portion 68B and the rear indentation 68C form an area thatextend continuously over three surfaces of the top wall 30A, the sidewall 30C and the bottom wall 30B.

The top surface affixing portion 68A and the back surface affixingportion 68B are parts onto which a label sheet (not shown in thefigures) to indicate the tape type etc. of the tape cassette 30 isaffixed over two surfaces of the top wall 30A and the side wall 30C(specifically, a rear wall). The rear indentation 68C is a steppedportion that is formed between the first tape housing area 33A and thesecond tape housing area 33B (refer to FIG. 3 to FIG. 6 and FIG. 14) inthe rear portion of the cassette case 31. In other words, the rearindentation 68C is provided between a rear wall 31C (refer to FIG. 13and FIG. 14) and the first and second tape housing areas 33A and 33B.The rear wall 31C is a wall portion forming the rear surface, of theside wall 30C of the tape cassette 30.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, the rear indentation 68C is aflat surface portion 958 that is upwardly indented in the bottom wall30B from the bottom surface, and has a shape that substantially matchesthe shape of the rear support portion 8C shown in FIG. 2. Morespecifically, the bottom surface includes the rear indentation 68C (theflat surface portion 958) in addition to a lower end surface portion 956that is located at the lower end of the cassette case 31 and occupies amajor part of the bottom surface. The rear indentation 68C (the flatsurface portion 958) is positioned at the same height position as thelower surface of the corner portion 32A and located between the topsurface and the lower end surface portion 956. As described earlier, thecommon portion 32 is formed symmetrically in the vertical direction withrespect to the center line in the vertical (height) direction of thecassette case 31, and the height T of the common portion 32 is set to bethe same, regardless of the width of the tape of the tape cassette 30.Therefore, similarly to the common portion 32, the distance from thecenter line in the vertical (height) direction of the cassette case 31to the rear indentation 68C is the same, regardless of the width of thetape of the tape cassette 30.

When the tape cassette 30 is installed in the cassette housing portion 8at a proper position, the rear support pin 301 provided in the rearsupport portion 8C contacts with the rear indentation 68C, and the reardetection portion 300 opposes the rear indentation 68C. Therefore, therear indentation 68C is provided with the rear indicator portion 900that is a portion that makes it possible for a person to identify thetape type, and that also allows the tape printer 1 to detect the tapetype by selectively pressing the rear detecting switches 310 (refer toFIG. 2 and FIG. 7).

The structure and the function of the rear indentation 68C that includesthe rear indicator portion 900 will be explained below in detail withreference to FIG. 13 to FIG. 16.

As described above, the tape cassette 30 according to the presentembodiment is structured such that when a person looks at the tapecassette 30 alone in a state in which the tape cassette 30 is notinstalled in the tape printer 1, the person can identify the type of thetape by visually checking the rear indicator portion 900. In addition,the tape cassette 30 is structured such that when the tape cassette 30is installed in the cassette housing portion 8 of the tape printer 1,the tape printer 1 can identify the type of the tape by the reardetection portion 300 detecting information indicated by the rearindicator portion 900. In the present embodiment, the tape typeindicated by the rear indicator portion 900 is color informationrelating to the tape mounted in the tape cassette 30. First, an areaincluded in the rear indentation 68C and the structure within the areawill be explained.

As shown in FIG. 13, the rear indentation 68C includes a specified areaR0. The specified area R0 is an area extending to the front from therear wall 31C, which is the wall portion forming the rear surface, ofthe side surface 30C of the tape cassette 30. More specifically, thespecified area R0 is an area adjoining the rear wall 31C in the rearindentation 68C. In the present embodiment, the entire rear indentation68C (the flat surface portion 958) is the specified area R0. Thespecified area R0, namely, the rear indentation 68C (the flat surfaceportion 958) is bounded by a wall portion 950 connecting portions 952Aand 952B, and a rear edge 954 of the bottom wall 30B. The specified areaR0 includes a plurality of vertical information sections X and aplurality of lateral information sections Y. The plurality of verticalinformation sections X is formed as a plurality of strip-shaped sectionsextending along a front-rear direction (the up-and-down direction inFIG. 13), which is a short side direction of the cassette case 31. Theplurality of lateral information sections Y is formed as a plurality ofstrip-shaped sections extending along a left-and-right direction (theleft-and-right direction in FIG. 13), which is a long side direction ofthe cassette case 31.

The vertical information sections X according to the present embodimentthat are exemplified in FIG. 13 include four vertical informationsections X1 to X4. The vertical information sections X1 to X4 arearranged at equal intervals in the left-and-right direction of thecassette case 31. Among the vertical information sections X1 to X4, thevertical information section X1 is positioned on the leftmost side (theright side in FIG. 13). The vertical information sections X2, X3 and X4are arranged in that order from the vertical information section X1toward the right side (the left side in FIG. 13). The widths (namely,the lengths in the left-and-right direction) of the vertical informationsections X1 to X4 are approximately the same, and adjacent verticalinformation sections among the vertical information sections X1 to X4are adjacent to each other at equal intervals.

The vertical information section X3 includes a part (i.e., a contactpoint P shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 6) at which outer peripheral edges ofthe first and second tape housing areas 33A and 33B contact each otherwhen seen in a plan view. In other words, the vertical informationsection X3 includes an imaginary line (hereinafter referred to as areference line Z) that passes through the contact point P and thatextends in the front-rear direction. In the vertical information sectionX3 according to the present embodiment, the reference line Z ispositioned slightly to the left (to the right in FIG. 13) of asubstantially center position in the left-and-right direction of thevertical information section X3.

The lateral information sections Y according to the present embodimentthat are exemplified in FIG. 13 include two lateral information sectionsY1 and Y2. The lateral information sections Y1 and Y2 are arranged inrows in the front-rear direction (the up-and-down direction in FIG. 13)of the cassette case 31. The lateral information section Y1 adjoins therear wall 31C, in the specified area R0. The lateral information sectionY2 is provided to the front (the lower side in FIG. 13) of the lateralinformation section Y1, in the specified area R0. The widths (namely,the lengths in the front-rear direction) of the lateral informationsections Y1 and Y2 are approximately the same.

The specified area R0 is an area that opposes the rear detectingswitches 310 of the tape printer 1 when the tape cassette 30 isinstalled in the cassette housing portion 8, and includes the rearindicator portion 900 that indicates the tape type (color information,in the present embodiment) of the tape cassette 30. At least oneaperture is formed in at least one of the lateral information sectionsY1 and Y2. A pattern in which the at least one aperture is formed in thelateral information sections Y1 and Y2 are determined in advance,according to the color information. The rear indicator portion 900 is aportion that indicates the color information by a combination of whetheror not an aperture is formed in each of the lateral information sectionsY1 and Y2. A person can recognize the color information by visuallychecking the combination of the aperture(s) formed in the lateralinformation sections Y1 and Y2 of the rear indicator portion 900.

The left-and-right direction positions of the apertures formed in thelateral information sections Y1 and Y2 may be fixed for each of thelateral information sections Y1 and Y2. For example, among a pluralityof areas where the lateral information sections Y1, Y2 and the verticalinformation sections X1 to X4 intersect and overlap with each other(hereinafter referred to as overlapping areas), at least one overlappingarea in each of the lateral information sections Y1 and Y2 may be fixedas an indicator. In such a case, the color information may be identifiedbased on a combination of whether or not the aperture is formed in eachof the indicators. If positions corresponding to the rear detectingswitches 310 (refer to FIG. 2 and FIG. 7) of the tape printer 1 aredetermined as the indicators, the color information can be identifiednot only by human visual check but also by the tape printer 1.

Given this, in the present embodiment, five overlapping areas thatrespectively oppose the five rear detecting switches 310A to 310E shownin FIG. 2 and FIG. 7 when the tape cassette 30 is installed in thecassette housing portion 8 are fixed as indicators 900A to 900E. Morespecifically, as shown in FIG. 13, the area in which the lateralinformation section Y1 and the vertical information section X1 intersectand overlap with each other functions as the indicator 900A that opposesthe rear detecting switch 310A. The area in which the lateralinformation section Y1 and the vertical information section X2 intersectand overlap with each other functions as the indicator 900B that opposesthe rear detecting switch 310B. The area in which the lateralinformation section Y1 and the vertical information section X3 intersectand overlap with each other functions as the indicator 900C that opposesthe rear detecting switch 310C. The area in which the lateralinformation section Y1 and the vertical information section X4 intersectand overlap with each other functions as the indicator 900D that opposesthe rear detecting switch 310D. The area in which the lateralinformation section Y2 and the vertical information section X3 intersectand overlap with each other functions as the indicator 900E that opposesthe rear detecting switch 310E.

In the example shown in FIG. 13, the apertures are formed in theindicators 900A and 900E. On the other hand, the indicators 900B, 900Cand 900D are surface portions that are in the same plane as the rearindentation 68C, and no aperture is formed therein. In such a manner,each of the indicators 900A to 900E is formed as either an aperture or asurface portion. The aperture and the surface portion can be identifiedby human visual check. In addition, when the aperture and the surfaceportion oppose the rear detecting switches 310, the aperture and thesurface portion respectively function as a non-pressing portion 901 thatdoes not press the rear detecting switch 310, and as a pressing portion902 that presses the rear detecting switch 310. Thus, the aperture andthe surface portion allow the tape printer 1 to identify the colorinformation. The relationship between the indicators 900A to 900E andthe rear detecting switches 310 will be described later in detail.

In the present embodiment, one indicator is provided in each of thevertical information sections X1, X2 and X4, while a plurality ofindicators are provided in the vertical information section X3. This isbecause the specified area R0 is the rear indentation 68C that has agenerally triangular shape in a plan view and that is defined by thefirst and second tape housing areas 33A and 33B and the rear wall 31C,and the rear indentation 68C has the maximum length in the front-reardirection, on the above-described reference line Z. In other words,among the vertical information sections X1 to X4, the verticalinformation section X3 including the reference line Z has the maximumlength in the front-rear direction. Accordingly, in a case where aplurality of indicators are arranged in rows in the front-rear directionin the rear indentation 68C, it may be most favorable to provide theplurality of indicators in the vertical information section X3, asdescribed above.

With the above-described structure, in the tape cassette 30 according tothe present embodiment, a person can easily recognize which of thelateral information sections Y1 and Y2, or which of the indicators 900Ato 900E includes an indicator element (an aperture or a surfaceportion). Hereinafter, this reason will be explained with reference toFIG. 13 to FIG. 16. Note that FIG. 13 and FIG. 14 show another tapecassette 30 that includes the rear indentation 68C (the specified areaR0) with a different pattern of apertures formed in the rear indentation68C (the specified area R0).

If a person can ascertain which of the respective lateral informationsections Y1 and Y2 includes an aperture by visually checking the rearindentation 68C, the person can identify the color information of thetape cassette 30 simply by visually checking the combination of theapertures in the respective lateral information sections Y1 and Y2. Theperson may visually check the rear indentation 68C in either of thefollowing two patterns. The first pattern is that the person looks atthe tape cassette 30 in a plan view with the top case 31A removed, andvisually checks the rear indentation 68C from above. The second patternis that the person looks at the tape cassette 30 in a bottom view (fromunderneath), and visually checks the rear indentation 68C. Accordingly,when the person does not know the positions of the lateral informationsections Y1 and Y2, the person can identify the elements in the lateralinformation sections Y1 and Y2 using the following methods, inaccordance with the pattern in which the person visually checks the rearindentation 68C.

First, element identification of the lateral information section Y1 willbe explained. As shown in FIG. 14, when a person visually checks therear indentation 68C from above (namely, from the inner side of thebottom case 31B) with the top case 31A removed, the person can identify,as the lateral information section Y1, an area adjoining the rear wall31C and extending in the left-and-right direction in a plan view. Thus,the person can identify an aperture formed adjacent to the rear wall 31Cas an aperture formed in the lateral information section Y1. Further,the person can identify a part where the aperture is not formed withinthe area adjacent to the rear wall 31C, as a surface portion provided inthe lateral information section Y1.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 13, when the person visually checksthe rear indentation 68C from underneath (namely, from the outer side ofthe bottom case 31B), the person cannot directly see the rear wall 31C.However, because the rear wall 31C is a thin plate and its thickness(the length in the front-rear direction) is small, the position in thefront-rear direction of the rear wall 31C generally corresponds to theposition in the front-rear direction of the contour formed by the rearsurface when the tape cassette 30 is seen in a bottom view. Therefore,the person can identify, as the lateral information section Y1, the areaadjacent to the contour formed by the rear surface and extending in theleft-and-right direction in a bottom view. Thus, in the same manner asthat described above, the person can identify the aperture and thesurface portion provided in the lateral information section Y1.

Next, element identification of the lateral information section Y2 willbe explained. As shown in FIG. 14, when a person visually checks therear indentation 68C from above, the person can recognize the contactpoint P (refer to FIG. 3 to FIG. 6) at which the outer peripheral edgesof the first and second tape housing areas 33A and 33B contact eachother when seen in a plan view. Further, the person can recognize thereference line Z that passes through the contact point P. Then, usingthe reference line Z as a reference, the element identification of thelateral information section Y2 can be performed in the following manner.

First, among apertures formed adjacent to the rear wall 31C (namely,among apertures provided in the lateral information section Y1), anaperture that is positioned closest to the reference line Z is definedas a reference aperture. If there is an aperture that overlaps with thereference line Z when seen in a plan view (namely, an aperture providedin the vertical information section X3), excluding the aperture on thereference line Z, another aperture that is positioned closest to thereference line Z is defined as the reference aperture. Further, an endthat is farthest from the reference line Z in the reference aperture isdefined as a reference end, and a length in the left-and-right directionbetween the reference line Z and the reference end is defined as areference distance D1. In the example shown in FIG. 14, the aperturethat is formed in the indicator 900A and that is positioned at theleftmost end among the indicators of the lateral information section Y1corresponds to the reference aperture. By using the left end of theaperture (the indicator 900A) as the reference end, the length in theleft-and-right direction from the reference end to the reference line Zis obtained as the reference distance D1.

If a length in the front-rear direction between the rear wall 31C andthe lateral information section Y2 is defined as a distance D0 (refer toFIG. 13), the position of the lateral information section Y2 is definedsuch that the distance D0 is less than twice the reference distance D1(refer to FIG. 14). More specifically, in the rear indentation 68C, atleast a part of the lateral information section Y2 is included within arange from the rear wall 31C to the front by a distance that is twicethe reference distance D1 (within the range of a distance D2 in FIG. 14;D2=D1*2).

Thus, it can be identified that at least a part of the lateralinformation section Y2 is present in front of the lateral informationsection Y1, within the range from the rear wall 31C to the front by thedistance that is twice the reference distance D1 (within the range ofthe distance D2) in the rear indentation 68C. Consequently, when anaperture that is disposed separately from the rear wall 31C (namely, anaperture that is not an aperture in the lateral information section Y1)is formed within the range of the distance D2 in the rear indentation68C, that aperture can be identified as the aperture provided in thelateral information section Y2. In particular, when only one indicatoris provided in the lateral information section Y2, whether or not anaperture is provided in the lateral information section Y2 can beidentified without accurately knowing the position of the indicator.

With the above-described method, the reference distance D1 andconsequently the distance D2 vary depending on the position in which thereference aperture is formed. For example, in the example shown in FIG.14, the aperture provided in the indicator (the indicator 900A in FIG.14) that is farthest from the reference line Z corresponds to thereference aperture. In this case, the reference distance D1 and thedistance D2 are largest. On the other hand, in the example shown in FIG.15, the aperture formed in the indicator 900B, which is closest to thereference line Z among the indicators of the lateral information sectionY1, corresponds to the reference aperture. In this case, the referencedistance D1 and the distance D2 are smallest.

As in the example shown in FIG. 16, when a plurality of apertures areformed in the lateral information section Y1, the aperture that isclosest to the reference line Z (the aperture in the indicator 900D inFIG. 16) corresponds to the reference aperture. Because the aperturethat is closest to the reference line Z (the aperture in the indicator900D in FIG. 16) corresponds to the reference aperture, the referencedistance D1 and the distance D2 are smaller than in a case where theaperture that is further away from the reference line Z (the aperture inthe indicator 900A in FIG. 16) is used as the reference aperture.

In the present embodiment, regardless of the pattern in which theaperture(s) is formed in the lateral information section Y1, theposition of the lateral information section Y2 in the front-reardirection is defined in advance such that at least a part of the lateralinformation section Y2 is included within a range of the smallestdistance D2 (which corresponds to the example shown in FIG. 15).Therefore, if at least one aperture is present in the lateralinformation section Y1, regardless of the position in which each of theapertures are formed, it is possible to identify whether or not thelateral information section Y2 includes the aperture, by using as areference the reference aperture that is closest to the reference lineZ.

When a person visually checks the rear indentation 68C from underneath(refer to FIG. 13), the person cannot directly see the first and secondtape housing areas 33A and 33B in a plan view. Therefore, in some cases,it may be difficult to recognize the contact point P (refer to FIG. 3 toFIG. 6) and the reference line Z. Accordingly, when the person visuallychecks the rear indentation 68C from underneath, in some cases, it maydifficult to perform element identification of the lateral informationsection Y2 using the above-described method. In such cases, thefollowing method can be used for the element identification of thelateral information section Y2.

In the rear indicator portion 900 according to the present embodiment,an aperture(s) and a surface portion(s) are provided in a pattern thatis determined in advance in accordance with the color information. Inthe present embodiment, in certain patterns that correspond to certaincolor information (for example, the tape color: clear, the charactercolor: black) relating to major tapes, a pattern of the two indicatorsthat are respectively provided in the lateral information sections Y1and Y2 and that are arranged in rows in the front-rear direction isfixed. Specifically, for the major color information, the frontindicator is provided with an aperture, and the rear indicator isprovided with a surface portion. Note that the major tape refers to atape that has high likelihood of being mounted in the tape cassette 30.For example, in the examples shown in FIG. 13 to FIG. 16, the twoindicators 900C and 900E, through which the reference line Z passes, areformed as a combination of a surface portion and an aperture,respectively.

With this arrangement, when the rear indentation 68C is visually checkedfrom underneath, with most of the tape cassettes 30 including the majortape, it is ensured that, in the two indicators aligned in thefront-rear direction, the indicator formed as an aperture is providedaway from the rear wall 31C and to the front of the indicator formed asa surface portion. Therefore, the aperture in the lateral informationsection Y2 does not adjoin the rear wall 31C. In other words, theaperture that is away from the rear wall 31C can be identified as theaperture provided in the lateral information section Y2. Therefore, aperson can identify the position of the lateral information section Y1by visually checking the surface portion of the indicator 900C, and theperson can also identify the position of the lateral information sectionY2 by visually checking the aperture of the indicator 900E.

On the contrary, of the two indicators that are respectively provided inthe lateral information sections Y1 and Y2 and that are aligned in thefront-rear direction, the rear indicator may be formed as an apertureand the front indicator may be formed as a surface portion. For example,although not shown in the figures, the two indicators 900C and 900E,through which the reference line Z passes, may be formed as acombination of an aperture and a surface portion, respectively. Withthis arrangement, when the rear indentation 68C is visually checked fromunderneath, it is ensured that, in the two indicators aligned in thefront-rear direction, the indicator formed as an aperture is providedadjoining the rear wall 31C and to the rear of the indicator formed by asurface portion. Therefore, the aperture adjoining the rear wall 31Cdoes not extend over the lateral information section Y2. In other words,the surface portion that is positioned to the front of the apertureadjoining the rear wall 31C can be identified as the surface portionprovided in the lateral information section Y2. Therefore, a person canidentify the position of the lateral information section Y1 by visuallychecking the aperture of the indicator 900C, and the person can alsoidentify the position of the lateral information section Y2 by visuallychecking the surface portion of the indicator 900E.

The person can also visually check the pattern of the aperture(s) andthe surface portion(s) formed in the rear indentation 68C of the presentembodiment from above. Therefore, even when the rear indentation 68C isvisually checked from above (refer to FIG. 13 to FIG. 16), the apertureor the surface portion in the lateral information section Y2 can beidentified in the same manner as that described above.

In the example of FIG. 13, among the plurality of overlapping areasformed by the lateral information sections Y1, Y2 and the verticalinformation sections X1 to X4, the overlapping areas of the lateralinformation section Y1 and the vertical information sections X1 to X4respectively function as the indicators 900A to 900D, and theoverlapping area of the lateral information section Y2 and the verticalinformation section X3 functions as the indicator 900E. In this case, ifthe color information is identified by whether an aperture is formed ineach of the indicators 900A to 900E, it is also necessary to identifywhich of the indicators 900A to 900E includes an aperture. If a personknows all the positions in the left-and-right direction of the verticalinformation sections X1 to X4 arranged in the rear indentation 68C, theperson can identify to which of the indicators 900A to 900E the apertureprovided in the lateral information section Y1 or Y2 corresponds, usingthe vertical information sections X1 to X4 as references. In otherwords, the person can visually identify which of the indicators 900A to900E, provided in the overlapping areas of the lateral informationsections Y1, Y2 and the vertical information sections X1 to X4, includesthe at least one aperture provided in the specified area R0.

The positions in the left-and-right direction of the verticalinformation sections X1 to X4 can be identified in the following manner,by a person visually checking the rear indentation 68C. As describedabove, because the reference line Z is included in the verticalinformation section X3, if the rear indentation 68C is visually checkedfrom above (refer to FIG. 14), the position in the left-and-rightdirection of the vertical information section X3 can be identified byusing the reference line Z as a reference. In addition, the verticalinformation sections X1 to X4 are lined up with each other in theleft-and-right direction at substantially equal intervals in thespecified area R0. Therefore, by using the vertical information sectionX3 as a reference, it may be possible to identify the verticalinformation sections X2 and X1 that are lined up in this order in theleft direction at equal intervals, and the vertical information sectionX4 that is arranged in the right direction at an equal interval. In thismanner, even when the positions in the left-and-right direction of thevertical information sections are not ascertained, it may be possible toidentify the positions of the vertical information sections X1 to X4, byusing as a reference the reference line Z that can easily be confirmedby visual check.

Further, when the rear indentation 68C is visually checked fromunderneath (refer to FIG. 13), it may be possible to identify theposition in the left-and-right direction of the vertical informationsection X3 that includes the indicators 900C and 900E, based on theindicators 900C and 900E that are formed by a combination of an apertureand a surface portion aligned in the front-rear direction. Thus,similarly to that described above, it may be possible to identify thevertical information sections X1 to X4 that are lined up atsubstantially equal intervals in the left-and-right direction in thespecified area R0. In this manner, even when the positions in theleft-and-right direction of the vertical information sections X1 to X4are not ascertained, it may be possible to identify the positions of thevertical information sections X1 to X4, by using as a reference theindicators (the combination of the aperture and the surface portion)aligned in the front-rear direction.

For this reason, based on which of the vertical information sections X1to X4 includes an aperture provided in the lateral information sectionY1, it may be possible to identify which of the indicators 900A to 900Dis formed as an aperture. Further, based on whether or not an apertureprovided in the lateral information section Y2 is located in thevertical information section X3, it may be possible to identify whetherthe indicator 900E is formed as an aperture. In this manner, with thetape cassette 30 according to the present embodiment, it may be possibleto identify the combination of the aperture and the surface portion inthe indicators 900A to 900E, by a person visually checking the rearindentation 68C.

Next, identification of the color information based on a combination ofwhether an aperture is formed in each of the lateral informationsections Y1 and Y2 or in each of the indicators 900A to 900E will beexplained. In the present embodiment, an example will be explained inwhich the tape color and the character color of the tape cassette 30 areidentified as the color information of the tape cassette 30. Note thatthe tape color included in the color information indicates a basematerial color of the tape (the heat-sensitive paper tape 55, the printtape 57, or the double-sided adhesive tape 58). The character colorincluded in the color information indicates an ink color of the inkribbon 60 when thermal-transfer printing is performed using the inkribbon 60. The character color also indicates a color developed by theheat-sensitive paper tape 55 when thermal printing that causes theheat-sensitive paper tape 55 to develop color is performed.

Color information element that each of the lateral information sectionsY1 and Y2 indicates is determined in advance. In the present embodiment,the lateral information section Y1 is determined as a section thatindicates information for identifying the tape color of the colorinformation. The lateral information section Y2 is determined as asection that indicates information for identifying the character colorof the color information. In this manner, the tape cassette 30 isstructured such that a corresponding color information element can beidentified with each of the lateral information sections alone,regardless of the structure of the other lateral information section.

Further, in a case where specific overlapping areas in the lateralinformation sections Y1 and Y2 function as the indicators 900A to 900E,the color information element that each of the indicators 900A to 900Eindicates is determined in accordance with which of the lateralinformation sections Y1 and Y2 includes each of the indicators 900A to900E. Accordingly, the indicators 900A to 900D are indicators foridentifying the tape color of the color information, and the indicator900E is an indicator for identifying the character color of the colorinformation. In other words, the lateral information section Y1 and theindicators 900A to 900D each function as a tape color indicator portion,and the lateral information section Y2 and the indicator 900E eachfunction as a character color indicator portion. A method foridentifying the color information based on the indicators 900A to 900Ewill be described below as an example.

The tape color and the character color indicated by each of theindicator portions will be described with reference to Table 1 to Table3. For explanatory purpose, in the Tables, a case where an aperture isformed in each of the indicators 900A to 900E is denoted by a value zero(0), and a case where each of the indicators 900A to 900E is a surfaceportion and no aperture is formed therein is denoted by a value one (1).Note that, in a case where the color information is identified based ona combination of the aperture(s) and the surface portion(s) formed inthe lateral information sections Y1 and Y2, the method for identifyingthe major tape color described below may be used, with reference to asimilar table in which the indicators 900B to 900D in Table 1 arerespectively replaced with a combination of the aperture(s) and thesurface portion(s) provided at three locations in the lateralinformation section Y1. The method for identifying the special tapecolor described below may be used, with reference to a similar table inwhich the indicators 900A to 900D in Table 2 are replaced with acombination of the aperture(s) and the surface portion(s) provided atfour locations in the lateral information section Y1. The method foridentifying the character color described below may be used, withreference to a similar table in which the indicator 900E in Table 3 isreplaced with the aperture or the surface portion provided at onelocation in the lateral information section Y2.

TABLE 1 Major Tape Color 900B 900C 900D (Y1) (X2) (X3) (X4) Clear 1 1 0Blue 0 1 1 Black 0 0 1

TABLE 2 Special Tape Color 900A 900B 900C 900D (Y1) (X1) (X2) (X3) (X4)White 0 1 1 1 Yellow 1 0 1 0 Red 0 1 0 1

TABLE 3 Character Color 900E (Y2) (X3) Black 0 Other than Black 1

First, a method, performed by human visual check, for identifying thecolor of the tape mounted in the tape cassette 30 will be described. Inthe present embodiment, the indicators 900A to 900D (the indicators inthe lateral information section Y1) indicate the tape color based on acombination of the aperture(s) and the surface portion(s). Inparticular, the tape color of the major tape that has a high likelihoodof being mounted in the tape cassette 30 can be identified simply byvisually checking the three indicators 900B to 900D. Further, the tapecolor for a special tape that has a low likelihood of being mounted inthe tape cassette 30 can be identified by visually checking the fourindicators 900A to 900D.

As shown in Table 1, corresponding to combinations of whether theindicators 900B to 900D, which form the tape color indicator portion,are each formed as an aperture or as a surface portion, three colors“clear” “blue” and “black” are respectively defined as major tape colorsindicated by the combinations. Therefore, a person can recognize thetape color of the major tape mounted in the tape cassette 30 simply byvisually checking, of the rear indicator portion 900, the indicators900B to 900D within the lateral information section Y1.

More specifically, if the indicators 900B to 900D are respectively asurface portion, a surface portion, and an aperture (the combination of“1, 1, 0” in Table 1), it indicates that the tape color is “clear”. Ifthe indicators 900B to 900D are respectively an aperture, a surfaceportion, and a surface portion (the combination of “0, 1, 1” in Table1), it indicates that the tape color is “blue”. If the indicators 900Bto 900D are respectively an aperture, an aperture, and a surface portion(the combination of “0, 0, 1” in Table 1), it indicates that the tapecolor is “black”. For example, in the tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 15,the indicators 900B to 900D are respectively an aperture, a surfaceportion, and a surface portion. Therefore, the tape color can beidentified as “blue”. In the tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 16, theindicators 900B to 900D are respectively a surface portion, a surfaceportion, and an aperture. Therefore, the tape color can be identified as“clear”.

The indicator 900C is provided in the vertical information section X3that can be identified by using the reference line Z as a reference.Therefore, among the indicators 900A to 900D in the lateral informationsection Y1, the indicator 900C can most easily be identified by humanvisual check. Further, the indicators 900B and 900D that arerespectively provided in the vertical information sections X2 and X4,which are located to the right and left of the vertical informationsection X3, can also easily be identified by human visual check.Therefore, the major tape color can be identified simply by checking theindicators 900B to 900D that can be identified by human visual check,among the indicators 900A to 900D in the lateral information section Y1.

As shown in Table 2, corresponding to combinations of whether theindicators 900A to 900D, which form the tape color indicator portion,are each formed as an aperture or a surface portion, three colors“white” “yellow” and “red” are respectively defined as special tapecolors indicated by the combinations. Therefore, a person can recognizethe tape color of the special tape mounted in the tape cassette 30simply by visually checking the indicators 900A to 900D within thelateral information section Y1 of the rear indicator portion 900.

More specifically, if the indicators 900A to 900D are respectively anaperture, a surface portion, a surface portion, and a surface portion(the combination of “0, 1, 1, 1” in Table 2), it indicates that the tapecolor is “white”. If the indicators 900A to 900D are respectively asurface portion, an aperture, a surface portion, and an aperture (thecombination of “1, 0, 1, 0” in Table 2), it indicates that the tapecolor is “yellow”. If the indicators 900A to 900D are respectively anaperture, a surface portion, an aperture, and a surface portion (thecombination of “0, 1, 0, 1” in Table 2), it indicates that the tapecolor is “red”. For example, in the tape cassettes 30 shown in FIG. 13and FIG. 14, the indicators 900A to 900D are respectively an aperture, asurface portion, a surface portion, and a surface portion. Therefore,the tape color can be identified as “white”.

As shown in Table 3, corresponding to whether the indicator 900E, whichis the character color indicator portion, is formed as an aperture or asurface portion, “black” or “other than black” is defined as thecharacter color. Therefore, a person can recognize the character colorfor the tape mounted in the tape cassette 30 by just visually checkingthe indicator 900E within the lateral information section Y2 of the rearindicator portion 900. More specifically, if the indicator 900E is anaperture (“0” in Table 3), it indicates that the character color is“black”. If the indicator 900E is a surface portion (“1” in Table 3), itindicates that the character color is “other than black”. For example,in the tape cassettes 30 shown in FIG. 13 to FIG. 16, the indicator 900Eis an aperture. Therefore, the character color can be identified as“black”.

In this manner, with the tape cassette 30 according to the presentembodiment, regardless of whether the indicator 900E provided in thespecified area R0 is formed as an aperture or a surface portion, withrespect to the major tape colors shown in Table 1, a person can identifythe tape color simply by visually checking the indicators 900B to 900D.With respect to the special tape colors shown in Table 2, the person canidentify the tape color simply by visually checking the indicators 900Ato 900D. With respect to the character colors shown in Table 3,regardless of whether each of the indicators 900A to 900D provided inthe specified area R0 is an aperture or a surface portion, the personcan identify the character color simply by visually checking theindicator 900E.

In the cassette case 31, the first and second tape housing areas 33A and33B are provided to the rear, while the ink ribbon housing area 33C isprovided to the front. Consequently, in the tape cassette 30 that usesthe ink ribbon 60, the tape (the double-sided adhesive tape 58 in FIG. 3and FIG. 4, and the print tape 57 in FIG. 5) and the ink ribbon 60 arealigned in the front-rear direction inside the cassette case 31,corresponding to the arrangement order in the front-rear direction ofthe lateral information sections Y1 and Y2. Therefore, the person canidentify the base material color of the tape located to the rear of theink ribbon, by visually checking the lateral information section Y1 thatindicates the tape color, which is to the rear side of the lateralinformation section Y2. Further, the person can identify the ink colorof the ink ribbon located to the front of the tape, by visually checkingthe lateral information section Y2 that indicates the character color,which is to the front side of the lateral information section Y1. Thus,based on the arrangement of the tape and the ink ribbon inside thecassette case 31, a person can accurately identify the color informationindicated by the lateral information sections Y1 and Y2.

The contents of the color information (the tape color and the charactercolor) indicated by each of the indicator portions are not limited tothose shown in Table 1 to Table 3, and can be modified as necessary.Additionally, although the total number of combinations of the colorinformation defined in Table 1 to Table 3 is twenty eight, all of thecombinations need not necessarily be used. However, it may be preferablethat the combination of the aperture(s) and the surface portion(s)corresponding to the color information is defined at least in accordancewith the following rules.

First, it may be desirable that at least one of the indicators 900A,900B and 900D, except the indicator 900C that can easily be identifiedusing the reference line Z as a reference, is formed as an aperture, andat least one of the indicators 900A, 900B and 900D is formed as asurface portion. In this case, when a person visually checks theindicators 900A to 900D, it may be possible to improve visibility of thecombination of the aperture(s) and the surface portion(s) of theindicators 900A to 900D, and it may be possible for the person to easilyidentify the combination.

Second, it may be desirable that the following two combinations are notemployed. One is a combination in which all the indicators 900A to 900Dwithin the lateral information section Y1 are surface portions. Theother is a combination in which all the indicators 900A to 900E withinthe specified area R0 are surface portions. In such combinations, theentire rear indentation 68C may be formed as a surface portion in whichonly one aperture is formed at a position away from the rear wall 31C,or as a surface portion including no aperture. Then, it may be difficultfor a person to ascertain that the rear indicator portion 900 isprovided in the rear indentation 68C in the first place. Therefore, byproviding at least one aperture in a position adjoining the rear wall31C, it may be possible to make clear that the rear indicator portion900 is provided in the rear indentation 68C.

Third, for the color information of the tape that has a high likelihoodof being mounted in the tape cassette 30, it may be desirable that oneof the indicators 900C and 900E that are aligned in the front-reardirection in the rear indentation 68C is an aperture, and the otherindicator is a surface portion. In this case, the person can identifythe element of the lateral information section Y2 by visually checkingthe rear indentation 68C as described above.

Fourth, when the tape color of the tape cassette 30 is identified byhuman visual check, regardless of whether the tape color is a major tapecolor or a special tape color, whether each of the indicators 900B to900D is an aperture or a surface portion is necessary information toidentify the tape color. Therefore, it may be preferable that the colorinformation corresponding to the special tape colors shown in Table 2does not include the color information corresponding to the major tapecolors shown in Table 1. More specifically, it may be desirable that thecolor information of the special tape colors (refer to Table 2) does notinclude combinations in which the indicators 900B to 900D are “surfaceportion, surface portion, aperture”, “aperture, surface portion, surfaceportion”, and “aperture, aperture, surface portion”. Thus, when a personvisually checks the rear indentation 68C, it may be possible to clearlydistinguish whether it is the major tape color or the special color, andit may be possible to easily identify the tape color.

The structure for the rear indicator portion 900 to indicate the colorinformation, and the method for identifying the color information by aperson visually checking the rear indicator portion 900 are describedabove. Hereinafter, the structure of the rear indicator portion 900 inrelation to the rear detecting switches 310 of the tape printer 1, andcolor information identification by the rear detecting switches 310 willbe described.

First, the structure of the rear indicator portion 900 in relation tothe rear detecting switches 310 of the tape printer 1 will be described.As described above, in the tape printer 1 of the present embodiment, therear detection portion 300 provided in the rear support portion 8C hasthe five rear detecting switches 310A to 310E (refer to FIG. 2 and FIG.7). In the tape cassette 30, the overlapping areas that respectivelyface the rear detecting switches 310A to 310E when the tape cassette 30is installed in the cassette housing portion 8 are formed as theindicators 900A to 900E (refer to FIG. 13 and FIG. 14).

When the aperture opposes the rear detecting switch 310, the switchterminal 322 of the rear detecting switch 310 can be inserted into andremoved from the aperture, and the aperture functions as thenon-pressing portion 901 that does not press the switch terminal 322.The non-pressing portion 901 is formed as a through-hole that has acircular shape in a plan view and matches the size of the indicator(overlapping area). The rear detecting switch 310 that opposes thenon-pressing portion 901 remains in an off state, as the switch terminal322 is inserted in the non-pressing portion 901.

When the surface portion opposes the rear detecting switch 310, thesurface portion functions as the pressing portion 902 that presses theswitch terminal 322. The rear detecting switch 310 that opposes thepressing portion 902 is changed to an on state, as the switch terminal322 contacts with the pressing portion 902. In the examples shown inFIG. 13 and FIG. 14, the indicators 900A and 900E are the apertures(namely, the non-pressing portions 901), and the indicators 900B to 900Dare the surface portions (namely, the pressing portions 902).

As described above with reference to Table 1 to Table 3, either anaperture (the non-pressing portion 901) or a surface portion (thepressing portion 902) is formed in each of the indicators 900A to 900Eof the rear indicator portion 900, in accordance with a prescribedpattern that corresponds to the color information. Accordingly, the tapeprinter 1 can identify the color information based on the combination ofthe on and off states of the rear detecting switches 310 that areselectively pressed by the rear indicator portion 900. Morespecifically, the prescribed pattern (the combination of the aperture(s)and the surface portion(s)) that is defined in advance for theindicators 900A to 900E as described above can be converted to adetection pattern (the combination of the on and off states) of thecorresponding rear detecting switches 310A to 310E. Then, the tapeprinter 1 can identify the color information with reference to a tablein which each detection pattern is associated with the colorinformation.

A color information table 520 shown in FIG. 20 is an example of a tableused in the tape printer 1 to identify the color information, and isstored in the ROM 402 of the tape printer 1. The color information ofthe tape cassette 30 is defined in the color information table 520 inaccordance with the combination of the on and off states of the fiverear detecting switches 310A to 310E. In the color information table 520shown in FIG. 20, the rear detecting switches 310A to 310E respectivelycorrespond to switches “ST1” to “ST5”, and the off state (OFF) and theon state (ON) of each of the rear detecting switches 310 correspond tothe values zero “0” and one “1”, respectively.

The color information table 520 of the present embodiment includes aplurality of color tables to respectively identify different colorinformation corresponding to different detection patterns of the reardetecting switches 310A to 310E. In the example shown in FIG. 20, thecolor information table 520 includes a first color table 521 and asecond color table 522. In the first color table 521, first colorinformation is defined in association with detection patterns of therear detecting switches 310A to 310E. In the second color table 522,second color information is defined in association with the detectionpatterns of the rear detecting switches 310A to 310E. In the presentembodiment, the first color table 521 is a standard color table thatincludes the color information that is frequently used, and the secondcolor table 522 is a special color table that includes the colorinformation that is less frequently used. In the tape printer 1, thefirst color table 521 and the second color table 522 are selectivelyused, and the color information (the first color information or thesecond color information) is identified in accordance with the detectionpattern of the rear detecting switches 310A to 310E, as will bedescribed later.

The table that can be used in the tape printer 1 is not limited to thecolor information table 520 shown in FIG. 20. For example, any selectedcolor information may be newly added corresponding to “spare” field inthe color information table 520. In addition, the color information thatis recorded in the color information table 520 may be deleted, thecorrespondence between each detection pattern and the color informationmay be changed, or the content of the color information corresponding toeach detection pattern may be changed. In such a case, theabove-described pattern of the aperture(s) that is determined foridentification of the color information by a visual check may also bechanged as necessary.

Next, detection modes of the tape type of the tape cassette 30 by thetape printer 1 will be explained with reference to FIG. 3 to FIG. 6,FIG. 17 and FIG. 18.

First, detection modes of the arm indicator portion 800 by the armdetection portion 200 will be explained with reference to FIG. 3 to FIG.6 and FIG. 17. When the tape cassette 30 is installed at the properposition in the cassette housing portion 8 by the user and the cassettecover 6 is closed, the platen holder 12 moves from the stand-by position(refer to FIG. 3) to the print position (refer to FIG. 4 to FIG. 6).Then, the arm detection portion 200 and the latching piece 225 providedon the cassette-facing surface 12B of the platen holder 12 move to thepositions that respectively oppose the arm indicator portion 800 and thelatching hole 820 provided on the arm front wall 35 of the tape cassette30.

In a case where the tape cassette 30 is installed in the cassettehousing portion 8 at the proper position, the latching piece 225 isinserted into the latching hole 820. As a result, the latching piece 225does not interfere with the tape cassette 30, and the switch terminals222 of the arm detecting switches 210 that protrude from thecassette-facing surface 12B oppose the indicators 800A to 800E (thenon-pressing portions 801 and the pressing portion 802) that areprovided at the corresponding positions in the arm indicator portion800, and are selectively pressed. More specifically, the arm detectingswitch 210 opposing the non-pressing portion 801 remains in the offstate by being inserted into the aperture that is the non-pressingportion 801. The arm detecting switch 210 opposing the pressing portion802 is changed to the on state by being pressed by the surface portionof the arm front wall 35 that is the pressing portion 802.

For example, in a case where the tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 2 andFIG. 10 to FIG. 14 is installed at the proper position in the cassettehousing portion 8, the arm detecting switches 210A, 210C and 210D are inthe off state (0), because they respectively oppose the indicators 800A,800C and 800D that are the non-pressing portions 801, as shown in FIG.17. On the other hand, the arm detecting switches 210B and 210E are inthe on state (1), because they respectively oppose the indicators 800Band 800E that are the pressing portions 802. More specifically, thevalues that indicate the on and off states of the arm detecting switches210A to 210E are identified as “0”, “1”, “0”, “0”, “1”, respectively.

In the tape printer 1, based on the detection pattern of the armdetection portion 200 (here, the combination of the on and off states ofthe five arm detecting switches 210A to 210E), the print information isidentified as the tape type of the tape cassette 30. In the presentembodiment, the print information of the tape cassette 30 includes thetape width and the print mode. The “tape width” included in the printinformation indicates one of seven types of tape width from 3.5 mm to 36mm. The “print mode” included in the print information indicates whetherthe print mode is a mirror image printing mode (laminated) or a normalimage printing mode (receptor).

The ROM 402 of the tape printer 1 stores a print information table (notshown in the figures) in which the print information of the tapecassette 30 is defined in association with the combinations of the onand off states of the five arm detecting switches 210A to 210E. In theabove-described example, with reference to the print information table(not shown in the figures), for example, “tape width: 36 mm, print mode:laminated” is identified as the print information in accordance with theon and off states “0”, “1”, “0”, “0”, “1” of the arm detecting switches210A to 210E.

Next, detection modes of the rear indicator portion 900 by the reardetection portion 300 will be explained with reference to FIG. 18. Whenthe tape cassette 30 is installed at the proper position in the cassettehousing portion 8 by the user, the rear detection portion 300 providedin the rear support portion 8C of the tape printer 1 opposes the rearindicator portion 900 provided in the rear indentation 68C of the tapecassette 30. More specifically, the switch terminals 322 (refer to FIG.2 and FIG. 7) of the rear detecting switches 310 that protrude from therear support portion 8C oppose the indicators (the non-pressing portion901 and the pressing portion 902) provided at the correspondingpositions in the rear indicator portion 900, and are selectivelypressed. Consequently, the rear detecting switch 310 that opposes thenon-pressing portion 901 is inserted in the non-pressing portion 901,and remains in an off state. Meanwhile, the rear detecting switch 310that opposes the pressing portion 902 is pressed by the pressing portion902, and is changed to an on state.

For example, in a case where the tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 2 andFIG. 10 to FIG. 14 is installed at the proper position in the cassettehousing portion 8, as shown in FIG. 18, the rear detecting switches 310Aand 310E respectively oppose the indicators 900A and 900E, which are thenon-pressing portions 901, and therefore remain in the off state.Meanwhile, the rear detecting switches 310B to 310D respectively opposethe indicators 900B to 900D, which are the pressing portions 902, andare therefore changed to the on state. Consequently, the on and offstates of the switches “ST1” to “ST5” that respectively correspond tothe rear detecting switches 310A to 310E are identified as “0”, “1”,“1”, “1” “0”, respectively.

In the tape printer 1, the color information is identified as the tapetype of the tape cassette 30, based on the detection pattern (here, thecombination of the on and off states of the five rear detecting switches310A to 310E) of the rear detection portion 300. In the above-describedexample, with reference to the above-described color information table520 (refer to FIG. 20), the color information corresponding to the onand off states “0”, “1”, “1”, “1” “0” of the rear detecting switches310A to 310E is identified. However, the identified color informationvaries depending on which of the color tables 521 and 522 included inthe color information table 520 is used. Here, the standard first colortable 521 is used in accordance with the off state of the arm detectingswitch 210D to be described later, and the color information “tapecolor: white, character color: black” is identified similarly to theabove-described identification result by a visual check.

Next, processing relating to printing performed in the tape printer 1according to the present embodiment will be explained with reference toFIG. 19. The processing relating to printing shown in FIG. 19 isperformed by the CPU 401 based on programs stored in the ROM 402 whenthe power source of the tape printer 1 is switched on.

As shown in FIG. 19, in the processing relating to printing, first,system initialization of the tape printer 1 is performed (step S1). Forexample, in the system initialization performed at step S1, the textmemory in the RAM 404 is cleared, and a counter is initialized to adefault value.

Next, the print information of the tape cassette 30 is identified basedon the detection pattern of the arm detection portion 200 (namely, basedon the combination of the on and off states of the arm detectingswitches 210) (step S3). At step S3, as described above, with referenceto the print information table (not shown in the figures) stored in theROM 402, the print information corresponding to the combination of theon and off states of the arm detecting switches 210A to 210E isidentified.

Then, it is determined whether or not the arm detecting switch 210D(hereinafter referred to as the switch SW4), among the plurality of armdetecting switches 210, is in the on state (step S5). When the switchSW4 is in the off state (no at step S5), the first color table 521 isselected from among the color tables included in the color informationtable 520 stored in the ROM 402 (step S7). When the switch SW4 is in theon state (yes at step S5), the second color table 522 is selected fromamong the color tables included in the color information table 520stored in the ROM 402 (step S9).

Next, the color information of the tape cassette 30 is identified basedon the detection pattern of the rear detection portion 300 (namely,based on the combination of the on and off states of the plurality ofrear detecting switches 310) (step S11). At step S11, with reference tothe color table selected at step S7 or at step S9, the color informationcorresponding to the combination of the on and off states of theplurality of rear detecting switches 310 is identified. In the presentembodiment, in the tape cassette 30 of the tape type that ismanufactured in large quantities, the indicator 800D corresponding tothe arm detecting switch 210D is formed as the non-pressing portion 801.For that reason, at step S11, in many cases, the color information isidentified with reference to the standard first color table 521.

Thus, in the present embodiment, the color table to be used to identifythe color information of the tape cassette 30 is selected in accordancewith the detection state of a particular arm detecting switch 210 (here,the on or off state of the arm detecting switch 210D). Therefore,without increasing the number of the rear detecting switches 310(namely, without increasing the area occupied by the rear detectionportion 300), it may be possible to increase the number of colorinformation patterns that can be identified by the tape printer 1.

In the processing relating to printing (refer to FIG. 19), the printinformation identified at step S3 and the color information identifiedat step S11 are displayed on the display 5 as text information (stepS13). In a case where the above-described tape cassette 30 (refer toFIG. 2 and FIG. 10 to FIG. 14) is properly installed, the display 5displays a message that reads, for example, “A 36 mm laminated-type tapecassette has been installed. The tape color is white and the charactercolor is black.”

Next, it is determined whether there is any input from the keyboard 3(step S15). If there is an input from the keyboard 3 (yes at step S15),the CPU 401 receives the characters input from the keyboard 3 as printdata, and stores the print data (text data) in the text memory of theRAM 404 (step S17). If there is no input from the keyboard 3 (no at stepS15), the processing returns to step S15 and the CPU 401 waits for aninput from the keyboard 3.

Then, if there is an instruction to start printing from the keyboard 3,for example, the print data stored in the text memory is processed inaccordance with the print information identified at step S3 (step S19).For example, at step S19, the print data is processed such that a printrange and a print size corresponding to the tape width identified atstep S3, and a print position corresponding to the print mode (themirror image printing mode or the normal image printing mode) identifiedat step S3 are incorporated. Based on the print data processed at stepS19, print processing is performed on the tape that is the print medium(step S21). After the print processing is performed, the processingrelating to printing (refer to FIG. 19) ends.

The above-described print processing (step S21) will be explained belowmore specifically. In a case where the laminated type tape cassette 30shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 is installed, the tape drive roller 46, whichis driven to rotate via the tape drive shaft 100, pulls out the filmtape 59 from the second tape spool 41 by moving in concert with themovable feed roller 14. Further, the ribbon take-up spool 44, which isdriven to rotate via the ribbon take-up shaft 95, pulls out the unusedink ribbon 60 from the ribbon spool 42 in synchronization with the printspeed. The film tape 59 that has been pulled out from the second tapespool 41 passes the outer edge of the ribbon spool 42 and is fed alongthe feed path within the arm portion 34.

Then, the film tape 59 is discharged from the exit 34A toward the headinsertion portion 39 in a state in which the ink ribbon 60 is joined tothe surface of the film tape 59. The film tape 59 is then fed betweenthe thermal head 10 and the platen roller 15 of the tape printer 1. Thencharacters are printed onto the print surface of the film tape 59 by thethermal head 10. Following that, the used ink ribbon 60 is separatedfrom the printed film tape 59 at the guide wall 47 and wound onto theribbon take-up spool 44.

Meanwhile, the double-sided adhesive tape 58 is pulled out from thefirst tape spool 40 by the tape drive roller 46 moving in concert withthe movable feed roller 14. While being guided and caught between thetape drive roller 46 and the movable feed roller 14, the double-sidedadhesive tape 58 is layered onto and affixed to the print surface of theprinted film tape 59. The printed film tape 59 to which the double-sidedadhesive tape 58 has been affixed (namely, the printed tape 50) is thenfed toward the tape discharge portion 49, discharged from the dischargeportion 49, and is cut by the cutting mechanism 17.

In a case where the receptor type tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 5 isinstalled, the tape drive roller 46, which is driven to rotate via thetape drive shaft 100, pulls out the print tape 57 from the first tapespool 40 by moving in concert with the movable feed roller 14. Further,the ribbon take-up spool 44, which is driven to rotate via the ribbontake-up shaft 95, pulls out the unused ink ribbon 60 from the ribbonspool 42 in synchronization with the print speed. The print tape 57 thathas been pulled out from the first tape spool 40 is bent in the leftwarddirection in the front right portion of the cassette case 31, and fedalong the feed path within the arm portion 34.

Then, the print tape 57 is discharged from the exit 34A toward the headinsertion portion 39 in a state in which the ink ribbon 60 is joined tothe surface of the print tape 57. The print tape 57 is then fed betweenthe thermal head 10 and the platen roller 15 of the tape printer 1.Then, characters are printed onto the print surface of the print tape 57by the thermal head 10. Following that, the used ink ribbon 60 isseparated from the printed print tape 57 at the guide wall 47 and woundonto the ribbon take-up spool 44. Meanwhile, the printed print tape 57(in other words, the printed tape 50) is then fed toward the tapedischarge portion 49, discharged from the discharge portion 49, and iscut by the cutting mechanism 17.

In a case where the thermal type tape cassette 30 shown in FIG. 6 isinstalled, when printing is performed, the tape drive roller 46, whichis driven to rotate via the tape drive shaft 100, pulls out theheat-sensitive paper tape 55 from the first tape spool 40 by moving inconcert with the movable feed roller 14. The heat-sensitive paper tape55 that has been pulled out from the first tape spool 40 is bent in theleftward direction in the front right portion of the cassette case 31,and is fed along the feed path within the arm portion 34.

Then, the heat-sensitive paper tape 55 is discharged from the exit 34Aof the arm portion 34, and is then fed between the thermal head 10 andthe platen roller 15. Then, characters are printed onto the printsurface of the heat-sensitive paper tape 55 by the thermal head 10.Following that, the printed heat-sensitive paper tape 55 (namely, theprinted tape 50) is further fed toward the tape discharge portion 49 bythe tape drive roller 46 moving in concert with the movable feed roller14, discharged from the discharge portion 49, and is cut by the cuttingmechanism 17.

In the above-described print processing (step S21), in a case where thelaminated type tape cassette 30 is installed, mirror image printing isperformed. In mirror image printing, the ink of the ink ribbon 60 istransferred onto the film tape 59 such that the characters are shown asa mirror image. On the other hand, in a case where the receptor typetape cassette 30 is installed, normal image printing is performed. Innormal image printing, the ink of the ink ribbon 60 is transferred ontothe print tape 57 such that the characters are shown as a normal image.Further, in a case where the thermal type tape cassette 30 is installed,thermal type normal image printing is performed on the heat-sensitivepaper tape 55 such that the characters are color developed as a normalimage.

In the present embodiment, the print mode “laminated” is applied to thetape cassette 30 with which mirror image printing is performed, whilethe print mode “receptor” is applied to the tape cassette 30 with whichnormal image printing is performed. For that reason, the print mode“receptor” is applied not only to the receptor type tape cassette 30shown in FIG. 5, but also to the thermal type tape cassette 30 shown inFIG. 6.

Through the above-described processing relating to printing (refer toFIG. 19), the tape type of the tape cassette 30 installed in thecassette housing portion 8 is identified by the tape printer 1, based onthe detection pattern of the arm detection portion 200 and the detectionpattern of the rear detection portion 300. More specifically, the armdetecting switches 210A to 210E on the arm detection portion 200 areselectively pressed by the arm indicator portion 800 provided on the armfront wall 35 of the tape cassette 30, and the print information of thetape cassette 30 is thus identified. Further, the rear detectingswitches 310A to 310E on the rear detection portion 300 are selectivelypressed by the rear indicator portion 900 provided on the bottom wall30B (more specifically, the rear indentation 68C) of the tape cassette30, and the color information of the tape cassette 30 is thusidentified.

As described above, the tape cassette 30 according to the presentembodiment is structured such that when a person looks at the tapecassette 30 alone, the person can identify the tape type (here, thecolor information) by visually checking the rear indentation 68C. Inaddition, the tape cassette 30 is structured such that when the tapecassette 30 is installed in the cassette housing portion 8 of the tapeprinter 1, the tape printer 1 can identify the tape type with the reardetection portion 300 detecting information indicated by the rearindicator portion 900. Of the foregoing structures, as a result ofstructuring the tape cassette 30 such that a person can recognize thecolor information by visually checking the rear indicator portion 900,the following effects may be particularly exhibited.

In a conventional manufacturing method for tape cassettes, it is ageneral practice to house a tape or the like in a cassette case inaccordance with a type of a tape cassette. For example, in accordancewith the color information (a combination of the tape color and thecharacter color) of the tape to be mounted in the tape cassette, aworker mounts, in the cassette case, a tape whose base material colormatches the tape color, and an ink ribbon with an ink color that matchesthe character color. However, there are a variety of combinations oftape colors and character colors. Therefore, when tape cassettes aremanufactured, the worker may mistakenly mount a tape or an ink ribbonthat does not correspond to the color information of the tape or the inkribbon to be mounted in the tape cassette.

With the tape cassette 30 according to the present embodiment, in themanufacturing process of the tape cassette 30, a worker can check therear indicator portion 900, by visually checking the rear indentation68C from above before assembling the top case 31A. Alternatively, theworker may check the rear indicator portion 900 by turning over thebottom case 31B before mounting a tape or the like, and visuallychecking the rear indentation 68C from the bottom side of the cassettecase 31. Therefore, the worker can identify the color informationintended for the cassette case 31, and can ascertain the tape color andthe character color of the tape or the like that should be housed in thecassette case 31. As a consequence, in the manufacturing process of thetape cassette 30, the worker can work while confirming the contents tobe housed in the cassette case 31, and thus errors in the manufacture ofthe tape cassette 30 may be reduced.

Furthermore, after the tape cassettes 30 has been shipped from theplant, even if the tape type or the like written on a label cannot beread for some reason, the worker can recognize the color information byvisually checking the tape cassette 30 from the bottom surface side.Therefore, the worker can easily select the tape cassette 30 havingdesired color information from among a plurality of the tape cassettes30.

In addition, the rear indicator portion 900 indicates the colorinformation using a simple structure formed of a combination of apresence and an absence of an aperture (namely, a combination of thenon-pressing portion(s) 901 and the pressing portion(s) 902) in each ofthe lateral information sections Y1 and Y2. Therefore, the rearindicator portion 900 may be formed easily on the cassette case 31 inadvance. For that reason, at the time of manufacture of the cassettecase 31, there may be no need to print the contents to be housed in thecassette case 31, nor to affix labels to indicate the contents, andtherefore errors in the manufacture of the tape cassette 30 can bereduced at a low cost.

Moreover, in the present embodiment, the laminated type tape cassette 30formed from the general purpose cassette is used in the general purposetape printer 1. Therefore, a single tape printer 1 can be used with eachtype of the tape cassette 30, such as the thermal type, the receptortype, and the laminated type etc., and it may not be necessary to usethe different tape printer 1 for each type. Furthermore, the tapecassette 30 is normally formed by injecting plastic into a plurality ofcombined dies. In the case of the tape cassette 30 that corresponds tothe same tape width, common dies can be used, except for the dieincluding the portion that forms the rear indicator portion 900. Thus,costs may be significantly reduced.

In the example described above, the specified area R0 of the rearindentation 68C includes overlapping areas that function as theindicators 900A to 900E, each of which includes either an aperture(namely, the non-pressing portion 901) or a surface portion (namely, thepressing portion 902) corresponding to the color information. In such acase, in the specified area R0, an aperture and a surface portion may beformed freely as long as the functions of the indicators 900A to 900Eare maintained.

More specifically, with the above-described tape cassette 30 shown inFIG. 2 and FIG. 10 to FIG. 14, all the areas in the specified area R0that do not function as the indicators 900A to 900E are surface portionsthat are in the same plane as the pressing portions 902. Therefore, theapertures (the non-pressing portions 901) provided in the specified areaR0 are formed separately from each other. However, it may not benecessary that the apertures are all separated from each other. Forexample, one aperture (groove) having a size and shape that include atleast two of the non-pressing portions 901 may be formed in thespecified area R0. Note, however, that in a case where one groove isformed, the groove needs to be formed such that the groove does notinclude a part that functions as the pressing portion 902.

FIG. 21 to FIG. 23 show an example of the tape cassette 30 in which eachof the non-pressing portions 901 provided in the indicators 900A and900B are made continuous to form a groove 903. In the tape cassette 30shown in FIG. 21 to FIG. 23, the indicators 900A to 900E arerespectively, an aperture, an aperture, a surface portion, a surfaceportion, and an aperture. Therefore, the tape color is identified as“blue” and the character color is identified as “black”, by eitherdetection of the rear detecting switches 310 or by human visual check.

As in the example shown in FIG. 21 to FIG. 23, with the tape cassette 30in which the plurality of non-pressing portions 901 provided in thelateral information section Y1 are made continuous to form the groove903, when element identification of the lateral information section Y2is performed by visually checking the rear indentation 68C from above orunderneath, the groove 903 is treated as one aperture. Therefore, if theaperture that is closest to the reference line Z is the groove 903, thisgroove 903 serves as the reference aperture, and the end (the left endin FIG. 23) that is farthest from the reference line Z in the groove 903serves as the reference end. Therefore, even when the groove 903 isprovided in the lateral information section Y1, element identificationof the lateral information section Y2 can be performed by visuallychecking the rear indentation 68C in a similar manner to that describedabove.

The tape cassette 30 and the tape printer 1 of the present invention arenot limited to those in the above-described embodiment, and variousmodifications and alterations may of course be made insofar as they arewithin the scope of the present invention.

The shape, size, number and arrangement pattern of the non-pressingportion(s) 901 and the pressing portion(s) 902 of the rear indicatorportion 900 are not limited to the examples represented in theabove-described embodiment, but can be modified as appropriate. Forexample, in the above-described embodiment, the non-pressing portion 901(aperture) of the rear indicator portion 900 is a through-hole that hasa circular shape in a plan view and that is provided to occupy almostthe entire overlapping area functioning as each of the indicators 900Ato 900E. However, the non-pressing portion 901 can be modified in arange of size and shape that substantially fully includes theoverlapping area functioning as each of the indicators 900A to 900E. Forexample, the non-pressing portion 901 may be a through-hole that has asquare shape in a plan view that substantially matches the overlappingarea, or the non-pressing portion 901 may have any other differentshape.

Further, the non-pressing portion provided on the rear indicator portion900 need not necessarily be a through-hole, but may be an indentation910 formed in the rear indentation 68C, as shown in FIG. 24. In theexample shown in FIG. 24, when a person visually checks the rearindentation 68C from underneath, the non-pressing portion 901 (theindentation 910) that is indented upward from the rear indentation 68Cis recognized as an aperture, similarly to the case where thenon-pressing portion 901 is formed as a through-hole. On the other hand,when the person visually checks the rear indentation 68C from above, thenon-pressing portion 901 (the recess 910) that protrudes upward in agenerally cylindrical shape from the rear indentation 68C is recognizedas a protrusion, not as an aperture. Therefore, when the person visuallychecks the rear indentation 68C from above, by recognizing, instead ofthe aperture, the protrusion formed by the non-pressing portion 901 (therecess 910), the person can identify the color information indicated bythe rear indicator portion 900, in a similar manner to that describedabove.

Further, the color information table 520 includes the first color table521 and the second color table 522, and either the first color table 521or the second color table 522 is selected based on the detection resultof the arm detecting switch 210D. However, the color information table520 may include a single color table.

The apparatus and methods described above with reference to the variousembodiments are merely examples. It goes without saying that they arenot confined to the depicted embodiments. While various features havebeen described in conjunction with the examples outlined above, variousalternatives, modifications, variations, and/or improvements of thosefeatures and/or examples may be possible. Accordingly, the examples, asset forth above, are intended to be illustrative. Various changes may bemade without departing from the broad spirit and scope of the underlyingprinciples.

What is claimed is:
 1. A tape cassette, comprising: a housing including a top wall having a top surface, a bottom wall having a bottom surface, and a side wall, the top wall and the bottom wall having a generally rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is a left-and-right direction of the housing, the top wall, the bottom wall, and the side wall defining a periphery of the housing, the bottom surface including a first flat surface portion and a second flat surface portion, the second flat surface portion extending generally parallel to the first flat surface portion and being located between the top surface and the first flat surface portion in a first direction generally perpendicular to the top surface or the first flat surface portion, the side wall including a front wall; an arm portion formed by the front wall and an arm rear wall behind the front wall, the arm portion partially surrounding an opening extending from the top surface to the bottom surface behind the front wall, and the front wall of the arm portion including a latching hole; at least one tape mounted in a tape housing area, the tape housing area being located at a rear side of the housing within the periphery and including a first tape housing area and a second tape housing area each having a generally circular shape in a plan view, the first and second tape housing areas being aligned with each other in the left-and-right direction such that outer peripheral edges of the first and second tape housing areas contact each other; an ink ribbon mounted in a ribbon housing area, the ribbon housing area being located on a front side of the tape housing area within the periphery; and a color indicator portion disposed in the second flat surface portion and including a first lateral information section and a second lateral information section, the first lateral information section and the second lateral information section being strip-shaped sections extending along the left-and-right direction of the housing and aligned in a front-rear direction of the housing, the first lateral information section including at least one first aperture formed in a pattern that corresponds to a base material color of the at least one tape, the first lateral information section adjoining a rear edge of the bottom wall, the second lateral information section including a second aperture that indicates a specific ink color of the ink ribbon, the second lateral information section being located to the front of the first lateral information section, wherein: the color indicator portion includes a reference vertical information section that is a strip-shaped section extending along the front-rear direction of the housing and that includes a reference line, the reference line being an imaginary straight line extending along the front-rear direction and passing through a contact point where the outer edges of the first and second tape housing areas contact each other, and the reference line overlapping, when seen from a direction perpendicular to both the left-and-right direction and the front-rear direction, the latching hole and the opening, and at least one of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is provided at least in the reference vertical information section.
 2. The tape cassette according to claim 1, wherein, one of the at least one first aperture formed in a specified position of the first lateral information section indicates a special color as the base material color.
 3. The tape cassette according to claim 1, wherein: each of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is one of a through-hole that penetrates the bottom wall and an indentation that is indented in the bottom wall upwardly from the bottom wall.
 4. The tape cassette according to claim 1, wherein: the color indicator portion includes a plurality of vertical information sections that are a plurality of strip-shaped sections extending along the front-rear direction of the housing and aligned in the left-and-right direction of the housing; the plurality of vertical information sections include a reference vertical information section including a reference line and a subordinate vertical information section arranged in parallel with the reference vertical information section, the reference line being an imaginary line extending along the front-rear direction and passing through a contact point where the outer edges of the first and second tape housing areas contact each other; and at least one of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is provided in at least one of the reference vertical information section and the subordinate vertical information section.
 5. The tape cassette according to claim 4, wherein: when a reference aperture is defined as the aperture positioned closest to the reference line, among the apertures formed in areas in the first lateral information section other than an area where the first lateral information section and the reference vertical information section intersect and overlap with each other, and when a reference end is defined as an end farthest from the reference line in the reference aperture, at least a part of the second lateral information section is included in a range that is less than twice a reference distance from the rear edge of the bottom wall toward the front, the reference distance being a length in the left-and-right direction between the reference line and the reference end; and the color indicator portion indicates a print color by whether the aperture that is separately disposed from the rear edge of the bottom wall is present in the range.
 6. The tape cassette according to claim 1, wherein: the color indicator portion includes a plurality of vertical information sections that are a plurality of strip-shaped sections extending along the front-rear direction of the housing and aligned in the left-and-right direction of the housing; and a surface portion is provided in an area where a predetermined vertical information section among the plurality of vertical information sections and the first lateral information section intersect and overlap with each other, and the second aperture is formed in an area where the predetermined vertical information section and the second lateral information section intersect and overlap with each other.
 7. The tape cassette according to claim 4, wherein at least two of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture are formed as apertures separated from each other in each of the at least two of a plurality of overlapping areas, the overlapping areas being areas where the first and second lateral information sections and the plurality of vertical information sections intersect and overlap with each other.
 8. The tape cassette according to claim 4, wherein at least one of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is formed over at least two of a plurality of overlapping areas, the overlapping areas being areas where the first and second lateral information sections and the plurality of vertical information sections intersect and overlap with each other.
 9. A tape cassette that is configured to be installable in a tape printer, the tape printer comprising a cassette housing portion and a plurality of detecting switches, the cassette housing portion being configured to removably house the tape cassette, the plurality of detecting switches being configured to detect identification information for identifying color information, the tape cassette comprising: a housing including a top wall having a top surface, a bottom wall having a bottom surface, and a side wall, the top wall and the bottom wall having a generally rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is a left-and-right direction of the housing, the top wall, the bottom wall, and the side wall defining a periphery of the housing, the bottom surface including a first flat surface portion and a second flat surface portion, the second flat surface portion extending generally parallel to the first flat surface portion and being located between the top surface and the first flat surface portion in a first direction generally perpendicular to the top surface or the first flat surface portion, the side wall including a front wall; an arm portion formed by the front wall and an arm rear wall behind the front wall, the arm portion partially surrounding an opening extending from the top surface to the bottom surface behind the front wall, and the front wall of the arm portion including a latching hole; at least one tape mounted in a tape housing area, the tape housing area being located at a rear side of the housing within the periphery and including a first tape housing area and a second tape housing area each having a generally circular shape in a plan view, the first and second tape housing areas being aligned with each other in the left-and-right direction such that outer peripheral edges of the first and second tape housing areas contact each other; an ink ribbon mounted in a ribbon housing area, the ribbon housing area being located on a front side of the tape housing area within the periphery; and a color indicator portion disposed in the second flat surface portion and including a first lateral information section and a second lateral information section, the first lateral information section and the second lateral information section being strip-shaped sections extending along the left-and-right direction of the housing and aligned in a front-rear direction of the housing, the first lateral information section including at least one first aperture formed in a pattern that corresponds to a base material color of the at least one tape, the first lateral information section adjoining a rear edge of the bottom wall, the second lateral information section including a second aperture that indicates a specific ink color of the ink ribbon, the second lateral information section being located to the front of the first lateral information section, each of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture being configured to receive one of the plurality of detecting switches inserted therein, wherein: the color indicator portion includes a reference vertical information section that is a strip-shaped section extending along the front-rear direction of the housing and that includes a reference line, the reference line being an imaginary straight line extending along the front-rear direction and passing through a contact point where the outer edges of the first and second tape housing areas contact each other, and the reference line overlapping, when seen from a direction perpendicular to both the left-and-right direction and the front-rear direction, the latching hole and the opening, at least one of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is provided at least in the reference vertical information section, and when the tape cassette is installed in the cassette housing portion of the tape printer, the color indicator portion disposed in the second flat surface portion opposes the plurality of detecting switches, each of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture receives one of the plurality of the detecting switches inserted therein to thereby cause the plurality of detection switches to detect the identification information for identifying the color information including the base material color and the specific ink color.
 10. The tape cassette according to claim 9, wherein, one of the at least one first aperture formed in a specified position of the first lateral information section indicates a special base material color.
 11. The tape cassette according to claim 9, wherein: each of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is one of a through-hole that penetrates the bottom wall and an indentation that is indented in the bottom wall upwardly from the bottom wall.
 12. The tape cassette according to claim 9, wherein: the color indicator portion includes a plurality of vertical information sections that are a plurality of strip-shaped sections extending along the front-rear direction of the housing and aligned in the left-and-right direction of the housing; the plurality of vertical information sections include a reference vertical information section including a reference line and a subordinate vertical information section arranged in parallel with the reference vertical information section, the reference line being an imaginary line extending along the front-rear direction and passing through a contact point where the outer edges of the first and second tape housing areas contact each other; and at least one of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is provided in at least one of the reference vertical information section and the subordinate vertical information section.
 13. The tape cassette according to claim 12, wherein: when a reference aperture is defined as the aperture positioned closest to the reference line, among the apertures formed in areas in the first lateral information section other than an area where the first lateral information section and the reference vertical information section intersect and overlap with each other, and when a reference end is defined as an end farthest from the reference line in the reference aperture, at least a part of the second lateral information section is included in a range that is less than twice a reference distance from the rear edge of the bottom wall toward the front, the reference distance being a length in the left-and-right direction between the reference line and the reference end; and the color indicator portion indicates a print color by whether the aperture that is separately disposed from the rear edge of the bottom wall is present in the range.
 14. The tape cassette according to claim 9, wherein: the color indicator portion includes a plurality of vertical information sections that are a plurality of strip-shaped sections extending along the front-rear direction of the housing and aligned in the left-and-right direction of the housing; and a surface portion is provided in an area where a predetermined vertical information section among the plurality of vertical information sections and the first lateral information section intersect and overlap with each other, and the second aperture is formed in an area where the predetermined vertical information section and the second lateral information section intersect and overlap with each other.
 15. The tape cassette according to claim 12, wherein at least two of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture are formed as apertures separated from each other in each of the at least two of a plurality of overlapping areas, the overlapping areas being areas where the first and second lateral information sections and the plurality of vertical information sections intersect and overlap with each other.
 16. The tape cassette according to claim 12, wherein at least one of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is formed over at least two of a plurality of overlapping areas, the overlapping areas being areas where the first and second lateral information sections and the plurality of vertical information sections intersect and overlap with each other.
 17. A tape printer comprising: a tape cassette comprising: a housing including a top wall having a top surface, a bottom wall having a bottom surface, and a side wall, the top wall and the bottom wall having a generally rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is a left-and-right direction of the housing, the top wall, the bottom wall, and the side wall defining a periphery of the housing, the bottom surface including a first flat surface portion and a second flat surface portion, the second flat surface portion extending generally parallel to the first flat surface portion and being located between the top surface and the first flat surface portion in a first direction generally perpendicular to the top surface or the first flat surface portion, the side wall including a front wall; an arm portion formed by the front wall and an arm rear wall behind the front wall, the arm portion partially surrounding an opening extending from the top surface to the bottom surface behind the front wall, and the front wall of the arm portion including a latching hole; at least one tape mounted in a tape housing area, the tape housing area being located at a rear side of the housing within the periphery and including a first tape housing area and a second tape housing area each having a generally circular shape in a plan view, the first and second tape housing areas being aligned with each other in the left-and-right direction such that outer peripheral edges of the first and second tape housing areas contact each other; an ink ribbon mounted in a ribbon housing area, the ribbon housing area being located on a front side of the tape housing area within the periphery; and a color indicator portion disposed in the second flat surface portion and including a first lateral information section and a second lateral information section, the first lateral information section and the second lateral information section being strip-shaped sections extending along the left-and-right direction of the housing and aligned in a front-rear direction of the housing, the first lateral information section including at least one first aperture formed in a pattern that corresponds to a base material color of the at least one tape, the first lateral information section adjoining a rear edge of the bottom wall, the second lateral information section including a second aperture that indicates a specific ink color of the ink ribbon, the second lateral information section being located to the front of the first lateral information section; a cassette housing portion configured to removably house the tape cassette; a feeding device configured to feed the at least one tape along at least one feed path when the tape cassette is installed in the cassette housing portion; a printing device configured to perform printing on a print medium tape fed by the feeding device, the print medium tape being one of the at least one tape; a plurality of detecting switches configured to protrude toward the bottom surface of the tape cassette and oppose the color indicator portion when the tape cassette is installed in the cassette housing portion, the plurality of detecting switches being configured to detect identification information for identifying color information of the at least one tape by being selectively inserted in the at least one first aperture and the second aperture, the identification information indicating a pressing state or a non-pressing state of each of the plurality of detecting switches; a table storage device storing a color information table in which pieces of identification information are respectively associated with pieces of color information; a color identifying device configured to identify, with reference to the color information table, the base material color and the specific ink color based on the color information associated with the identification information detected by the plurality of detecting switches, wherein: the color indicator portion includes a reference vertical information section that is a strip-shaped section extending along the front-rear direction of the housing and that includes a reference line, the reference line being an imaginary straight line extending along the front-rear direction and passing through a contact point where the outer edges of the first and second tape housing areas contact each other, and the reference line overlapping, when seen from a direction perpendicular to both the left-and-right direction and the front-rear direction, the latching hole and the opening, and at least one of the at least one first aperture and the second aperture is provided at least in the reference vertical information section. 